


A Deal For Life

by LadyKayKay



Category: Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Angst, F/M, Lots of Angst, Marriage Proposal, Marriage of Convenience, One Big Happy Family, Slow Build, Slow Burn, Teen Pregnancy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-01
Updated: 2019-10-29
Packaged: 2020-06-02 06:45:43
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 68
Words: 164,524
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19436077
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LadyKayKay/pseuds/LadyKayKay
Summary: This is an AU FIC. Jon Snow and Daenerys Targaryen attend Dragonstone university. She's a freshman and he's in his last year. He works for a secret militar branch called the Night's watch. They've met and went on a couple of dates, still getting to know each other, nothing serious, when Dany has a set back. She finds herself pregnant with Drogo's baby.Just to give a little bit of history, Drogo and Dany dated for a while when she was 16 and he was much older. He decided to leave, to persue a new life for himself, despite loving each other. They had a one night stand, and Dany got pregnant, but Drogo is not interested in raising a baby and that's when Jon Snow sweeps in and saves the day, meaning, gives Dany and her unborn child a chance of a better, loving life.This is an angsty ride, lots of misunderstandings, when love blossoms when you least expect.Also, its Jonerys from top to bottom and it's a story of two people finding each other in love. And last, I must warn, I draft 30 chapters already, so this is a long, but lovely and full of love ride.*COMPLETE*





	1. Of Truths

**Author's Note:**

> Just give it a chance, even if you're not okay with the Drogo/Dany pairing. It serves only to get Jon and Dany together. It's an angsty story and slow burn, but it'll burn, I assure you. :)

"Tell me the truth."

With those four words, Drogo knew he had a problem. Immediately he began assuring himself that she had no idea that it was entirely impossible for her to have the slightest idea of what had occurred. Still, Drogo felt paralyzed with fear; a fear that had evolved deep inside of him from the day it had happened.

The day they had been drugged.

It had been four weeks. Four weeks of feeling regret and anguish over what he had done. But he had also felt a near sense of pride because he alone carried the weight of the burden that was the memory of that short time he and Dany had been blissfully happy. It was because of that pride that the fear had started to manifest. A fear that the secret that was his burden would not remain a secret. A fear that Dany would find out what  _ really _ happened and he would have to deal with her feelings about his actions. Her pain and sense of loss. Her feelings of betrayal.

Drogo and Dany had dated for 2 years. She was barely a 16 year old when he was in his early thirties and just when he was starting to get back on his feet, long gone were the days when he had trouble with the police and was considering opening up a gym for himself. They’ve overcome quite a lot, including her great uncle’s disapproval of their relationship, but, in the end, he realized that, despite loving each other, they were both at different stages in life. Dany would start College in a couple of years and he couldn’t take that experience away from her and he just wanted to start anew. Thus, they’ve broken up and he had moved to King’s Landing to pursue his dream as a business owner and opened The Arakh - Fitness Center. 

  
  


"Tell me, Drogo."

Drogo finally stood up from the desk of the office where had been sitting in when she had burst into the gym mere seconds before. It was only eight-thirty. “Uh… what are you talking about, Daenerys? What are you doing here?"

"Don’t play stupid, Drogo," Dany replied, her voice quiet but full of anger. "You _ know _ why I am here. Something happened the last time we’ve seen each other and it was a lot more than just the argument with you and that party at Vaes Dothraki Night Club. I’ve been having dreams…."

"Dreams?" Drogo asked, concerned, as he moved towards her.

Daenerys nodded her head, softening a bit. "Dreams that I know aren’t really dreams at all. They are memories… of you and me, but they aren’t memories of anything that’s ever happened or… that I know happened… I don’t know. It’s just… I keep seeing you and me and... some place… um… we made love."

Drogo closed his eyes and stiffened when the unexpected and unwanted images invaded his mind. Images of taking her on the kitchen table until it collapsed under their hard use of it, of carrying her to his bed and thoroughly loving her there, of their playful conversation when they had ice cream…

"I’m not wrong, am I?" Dany questioned. "There is something more to it."

Still not looking her in the eye, Drogo nodded. "You were never supposed to know. We shouldn’t have hook up I don’t understand how this happened."

"Know what? I  _ need _ answers, Drogo!"

Drogo nodded again, this time in agreement to tell her. "The last time you came, you’re right… a lot more happened than us arguing at that damn party…"

"What do you mean?"

"Do you remember that huge bowl of punch it had in the party? And do you remember us drinking lots of it and then starting fighting over our relationship and why it hadn’t worked and why we were apart, it was all my fault and we decided to take over the conversation to my place instead of making of ourselves any more stupid than we already were?”

Dany gasped, "Yes. You came up to me and just kissed me… like I’ve never been kissed before."

Drogo couldn’t stop the small smile from gracing his lips and the fond memory. "And then we came back here and talked about it. We decided to take things slow, but then we…"

"Couldn’t keep our hands off of each other," Dany concluded.

"Yeah," Drogo responded, his voice soft as they both remembered all the times they had made love.

After a moment, Dany looked up at him, her eyes full of tears she was fighting. "But what happened, Drogo? What happened to make us not be together for this past month? What made me forget all of this?"

Drogo sighed and his shoulders drooped as he recalled all the not-so-fond memories. "That night after we had sex…” Drogo deeply sighed “you fell asleep. Mago, one of the guys from the gym, called me and told me what happened, how they had spiked the punch with whatever drug I can’t remember. Mago and I decided to check on it, when he told me other guys were feeling very sick and needed to be taken to the hospital. You were asleep and I figured I would be back before you woke up and you wouldn’t even realize my absence for a couple of hours. Clearly, I was wrong. When I got back, you were gone.” 

"So you went and helped your friends out and left me alone and when I woke up, I didn’t even know where I was, or what I had done. The last thing I remembered back then is talking to Missandei about you at the party… and was kind of embarrassed to have woken up in a place I’d never been so I just got up and left to go back to the hotel me and Missandei were staying." Dany said as the memories flooded back to her.

"It was the hardest thing I ever did. Leaving you there, but I only thought you were asleep because you and I drank so much. But I think you drank more of that punch than me. It affected you a lot more than it affected me." Drogo told her.

"So why didn’t you share it with me? Why didn’t you tell me?"

"Because, Dany… when I came back you weren’t there anymore and I thought we were on the same page, that we simply can’t be together, as a couple for we are in different stages in our lives. Our love making, reliving that past that is over, according to all the things you’ve said to me and I agreed. I still do. Do you think it’s easy knowing what we had every day and living without it? I love you so much but I just can’t overcome your age and my age and what I want for my life now. For the first time, in my 36 years old, I’m happy with what I have. If I can save you the slightest amount of pain, I’ll do it. But I know how hard that would’ve been. For me. For you. And as you didn’t call me, I just let it go. Let yourself go, once again."

Dany sat down in a chair on the other side of Drogo’s desk and tried to put everything he had told her together. It was so incredibly overwhelming.

Drogo got himself back in control and pushed back all the feelings he had about what had occurred. It wasn’t good for neither of them being like that. Being calm and rational was the only way he could handle this. He began to pace back and forth in front of his desk. "What I don’t understand is how you are remembering this. Even in dreams… I mean, for all intents and purposes, and from what the doctors said of this new drug, it’s as if the day never happened to you or to others who had more of that punch that your bodies could handle."

"Maybe my subconscious is trying to make me remember," Dany suggested, looking up at him.

"Yeah, but how would your subconscious even know?"

"Well, there’s more," Dany said, wringing her hands in her lap. Taking a deep breath, she just spit it out. "I’m pregnant."


	2. Of Uncovered Truths

Drogo froze; his body and mind both in shock. "Pregnant?"

Dany nodded and looked down at her hands. "I’m two weeks late. I tried to ignore it, but I’ve been having all these dreams for the past four weeks and I just knew something was going on. I bought a pregnancy test and took it yesterday. I spent all day worrying about it and I *knew* I had to see you, so I got on the first train here this morning. I’m pregnant, Drogo."

"It’s not possible, Dany. We used protection. You were very clear about that. If we… made a baby… "

Dany shook her head. "Drogo, I *know* I am pregnant and I *know* that you are the father."

Drogo crouched in front of her. "How do you know that, Dany? Maybe… this is someone else’s baby?"

Dany stood up and glared down at him. "How dare you say that?! What, you think I found out I was pregnant and decided it was the perfect way to trap you so I came up with a whole big scheme to trick you? Or maybe I just went and got pregnant on purpose! Any way I can force you to be with me, right, Drogo?"

"That’s not what I meant," he protested as he stood up as well. "It’s just that… well I know you were with someone else a while ago, Missandei told me… some guy, Daario Naharis, and more recently, someone named Jon Snow and I know that you aren’t *with* any of them… so perhaps you are having his child but you’re afraid of that and so you need to believe it’s my child because you know I love you."

Dany couldn’t believe her ears. Drogo, her Drogo, was accusing her of something like this, after keeping tabs on her after he left…. it was as though her world was crashing down around her. She forced herself to calm so that she wouldn’t sound hysterical and shriek at him "Yes, and I tried to go out sometimes, but it never really worked out. And yes, I slept with someone else. No, we are not a couple anymore. It was a one-time thing. The actual truth of it is Daario used me just for sex and dumped me after he got what he wanted. But that was in April. I got my period in May. And all the other months after it. And now it’s December! It was after I slept with *you* that I skipped a period and took the pregnancy test. It’s *your* baby, Drogo."

"Oh Dany, I’m so sorry," Drogo replied, not really being clear with her or himself whether he was sorry about what he had accused her of, or because of the fact that Daario (he knew all about this guy. He made sure he was kept him very well informed about Dany, even if he knew they couldn’t be together. 

Dany just shrugged her shoulders and shook her head slightly, trying to brush off the pain of his allegation. "Drogo, all that matters right now is I am pregnant and we have to figure out what to do."

"You’re only a month along, so you can still have it… taken care of," he told her in a voice so low, she had to strain to hear it.

Dany looked at him with utter shock. "You want me to have an abortion?"

"I’ll pay for it and take you and everything," he replied.

Dany glared at him again. "There is no way in Hell I am having an abortion. This baby is a miracle, Drogo. I never would have dreamed I could have any child, your child, but now I can. There’s no way I am going to get rid of it!"  
"Do you think I really want you to? Do you think the thought of the two of us having a baby together doesn’t make me want it so very much?"

"I don’t know! I would have thought you’d be so happy about it before, but now you are saying you don’t want it."

"Because it’s not that simple, Daenerys. You can’t just have a baby and we can’t just get a place and marry each other and live happily ever after. Life is a lot more complicated than that. I have a life I’ve built here and I’m finally happy with how things are. And I just don’t want to have a child."

"I can’t believe you’re telling me to take this gift we have been given and to throw it away," Dany said. "There is a reason for why I am pregnant with this child. I have to believe that it’s something more than some random fuck “ she cringed at the term, “It’s something to be cherished."

Drogo sighed and looked down. "I can’t be a father, Dany. Not now. Or ever."

"I’m keeping this baby," she replied firmly.

"Okay," Drogo nodded, knowing she wouldn’t change her mind, and a small part of him rejoicing in the fact that she wouldn’t. Even though he knew that logically this baby was a bad idea… it was his child… a combination of he and Dany… the result of their love. That part of him couldn’t help but be happy about that.

Taking a step closer to him, Dany lightly touched the side of his face with her hand. "We’ll work it out somehow."

Drogo shook his head. "There can’t be a ‘we’ anymore, Dany. I can accept that you want to have this baby, but I can’t be a part of it."

Dany looked at him with disbelief. "You aren’t going to be a part of our baby’s life?"

"I want to, so much, Dany, but I *can’t*!"

"Yes you can! We will figure something out. We always do, Drogo."

"Not this time. I simply don’t see myself as a father and I’m not interested to be one."

Numb, Dany sat back down in the chair and tried to fathom the meaning of what he was saying. She was going to be a single mother. She was eighteen years old, carrying the man she loved more than anything’s child, and he was telling her he refused to be a part of it.

"I’ll help you, of course. I’ll think about something. I will give you all the money you need. You’ll have Jorah and your friends and your uncle of course. I know it’s not the same, but…"  
"You can keep your money and shove it up your ass. If you don’t want to be my baby’s father, you won’t. From this point on, you won’t hear another word about him or her. You won’t have to give me any money. I will take care of it without you."

Drogo studiously avoided looking her in the eye. "You have to start thinking differently if you’re going to be a mother, Daenerys. You can’t be rash and stubborn because it could be at the expense of your child."

"Oh great, now you are going to bestow upon me some of your great wisdom. Well, if you don’t want to give me your support, I want nothing from you. Not your money, not your opinions and not your advice!" Dany yelled at him, standing up from the chair, the sadness inside her replaced by anger. "You don’t have to worry, if I have to eat a cracker a day and wear rags, my baby will have food and clothes and somewhere to live."

"Dany, please…."

"Please what? Please don’t be mad at you because you don’t want to be a father and I’m not making it easy?"

"It’s not like that! I love you!"

"Yeah, well I love you too, but that really doesn’t matter anymore, does it?" she said quietly, before turning and walking out of the room.

Drogo suppressed the urge to chase after her and grab her to beg her to take him back. To tell her he was so happy she was having his baby and she was right, that they could find a way to make it work. It was better this way. He wished she had agreed to let him help her financially, but he supposed after she cooled off, she might change her mind. Even if she never wanted to ask him for it, he could always go through Jorah Mormont.

It was for the best, it had to be.


	3. Of revelations

“Dany, Hi!”

Daenerys turned around and was surprised to find Jon Snow at the Dragonstone Train Station. She’d arrived back in town from King’s Landing moments earlier and had been trudging through the terminals so that she could head home, in Harrenhal, for Christmas Eve with her uncle… at which some point she would have to inform uncle Aemon he was going to be a grandfather of sorts.

"Hello, Jon! What are you doing here?"

Jon walked up to her with a warm smile on his face. "I was just dropping off a friend so that he could be home with his family in Horn Hill tonight."

"I’m surprised to see you still in town," she replied, forcing herself to return the smile, even though hers was on the weak side.

"Well I’m actually heading to the airport now. My plane for Winterfell leaves in two and a half hours," Jon explained. "When I get to Winterfell it’ll be seven, so I will be home in time for the traditional eight o’clock dinner."

"Sounds great," she replied. "I always used to yearn for a huge family at Christmas, but I’ve grown to like quiet Christmas’ with my uncle."

"So you aren’t going out of town? I mean you never said anything before, but I figured you might be going somewhere since you were here."

Dany shook her head. "I actually just got back into town. I was in King’s Landing just for a little while this morning and I’m heading for Harrenhal in the next train."

"Wow, you must have left early," Jon replied, noticing that Daenerys seemed preoccupied.

"Yeah, first thing this morning. It was just something important that I needed to take care of."

"And you did? Take care of it, that is."

"Yeah it’s… settled," Dany answered quietly.

"Well that’s good. Hey, because of the Night’s Watch I can’t stay in Winterfell for long. I’ll only be gone for less than a week. Want to go out to dinner when I get back next week?"

Dany took a deep breath and shook her head. "I don’t think it’s a good idea, Jon."

"Okay," Jon replied, trying not to look disappointed. "Maybe some other time when you aren’t too busy."

"No, Jon, I don’t think I can ever have dinner with you. I don’t think we can see each other anymore."

"Oh," said Jon. He was caught completely off guard.She had tried to push him away, but he had thought that they’d moved past that, that Dany was willing to try to have a relationship with him, after they went out in a couple of dates.

"Believe me when I say it’s not you, Jon. It’s me," she assured him, then sighed. "I might as well tell you, because you’ll find out anyway. The real reason I can’t see you anymore is… I’m pregnant."

"Pregnant?"  
"Yeah," she nodded.

"Are you and the father… I mean… is the father a part of your life?" Jon asked, still shocked at her announcement.

Dany shook her head. "No, he’s not at all going to be involved with me or the baby. He’s not why I can’t see you. You’re a great guy, Jon, but I still could never expect you to want to date a girl who is having someone else’s baby. I don’t want you to feel bad about saying it, so I am not going to make you. To be honest, right now I think a relationship is the last thing I need."

"I can understand that," Jon responded.

Dany gave him a wistful smile. "Jon, are you all right?"

"Yeah, you just caught me off guard," Jon answered. "Listen, I really like you, Dany. Not just as a girl I would like to date, but as a person. I would like it if I could at least be your friend now. I want to be there to offer you support or help or whatever you might need."

Dany was surprised at his offer. She’d half expected him to be mad. Most guys probably wouldn’t take the news all that well. "I would love that. I can always use a friend."

"Good," Jon grinned. "Man, I wish I could take you to go talk or something right now, but I need to get on my way or I will miss my flight."

"That’s fine, Jon. I need to do some thinking right now anyway. You need to get on your way. The airport is going to be a mess. Besides, the train leaves in a bit and a time to think sounds nice."

"All right," Jon replied, reaching down to grab her hand and give it a gentle squeeze. "No matter how bad you may feel… try to have a nice Christmas, okay?"

"I will," she promised. "You have a good time with your family."

"I always do," he grinned.

"Bye."

"Goodbye Dany," Jon replied before turning and heading in the direction of his truck.

"Oh, and Jon," Dany called, giving him a genuine smile when he turned around. "Don’t forget you promised me dinner next week."

Chuckling, Jon nodded. "You got it."

*  
"Are you okay, sweetling?" Aemon asked her niece, concerned at how quiet Dany had been all evening. 

Dany nodded and smiled reassuringly at her uncle. "I’m just tired." She’s lived with her uncle, who raised her after her family died in a car crash when she was little. She loved him very much, and considered him as a surrogate grandfather. Though he was from another generation, with different ideas, they get along quite well, except for the time she and Drogo dated. Uncle Aemon never approved of him, especially because Drogo and Dany had always had relationship problems and uncle Aemon didn’t like the fact that Drogo was much older than her. So, when Drogo moved to King’s Landing, ending their relationship, things between her and her uncle were as smooth as it could go.

"Oh, what time did you get up today?" Uncle Aemon before taking a bite of mashed potatoes.

Dany’s little trip to had luckily gone unnoticed since her uncle had been on a buying trip in High Heart and hadn’t gotten to Harrenhal until late that afternoon - late enough for Dany to get home back from Dragonstone and King’s Landing and change into some sweats. Aemon hadn’t suspected a thing.

"About nine, I guess. I think I’m still just tired from school and that whole end of semester thing," Dany replied.

Aemon nodded in agreement and patted Dany’s hand. "Well, you have a nice long break before school starts back up again. You can get all caught up on your rest."

"Definitely," said Dany as she tried to decide if she should tell her uncle now. It seemed like a really good time. It was just the two of them and uncle Aemon was in a good mood…. Although she really preferred her idea to tell her uncle while they were in a restaurant since he was less likely to kill her in public. Besides, it was Christmas Eve, why ruin the holiday by dropping a bomb like impending grandparentdom on uncle Aemon? It was definitely *not* going to be a -happy moment and she really shouldn’t spoil Christmas for the rest of both their lives by creating bad memories. She had eight more months to tell him, what were another few days?

*

"Good God, that has to be the most disturbing thing I have ever seen!" Jorah Mormont exclaimed as he watched Grey do his best personification of the robot dance.

On the couch beside him, Dany and Missandei were trying not to laugh out loud at the dancing abilities of Missandei’s boyfriend. Hearing a timer go off, Dany got up to go check on the chicken in the oven. Dany and Missandei shared a dorm room at Dragonstone University so getting together was always good fun, apart College life being too time consuming for all of them, they had all decided to try to do the big holiday meal together, at her home in Harrenhal. Uncle Aemon hadn’t minded, since a friend of his was having a get-together, so Dany wouldn’t be home alone on Christmas Day. Jorah Mormont was a dear friend of them, some sort of older brother figure, as his family was from Harrenhal and they would hang out together and all became fast friends. When Dany and Missandei moved to Dragonstone University, they were pleased to have a friendly face in the city, as Jorah also lived in Dragstone. Then, early in their freshmen year, Missandei started dating Grey and they have a close bond and hang out a lot at Jorah’s shop.

"Hey Dany, need a taste-tester?" a hopeful Grey asked as he walked into the kitchen.

"That’s quite all right," she laughed. "I’d like to have some left for everyone else."

After she was sure the turkey was thoroughly cooked, Dany got started on setting all the food out on the table with Grey’s help. She loved to cook, even though she was pretty new at it. 

Suddenly it hit her that pretty soon she would *have* to start cooking a lot… theoretically, anyway. Her baby would want solid foods at some point.

Her baby.

The thought made Dany feel a bevy of different emotions at once. Fear, excitement, despair, happiness and most of all- uncertainty. It was all so confusing. She had no idea what she was going to do.

"Dany… earth to Daenerys…"

Dany was startled out of her contemplations by Missandei’s playful teasing. With an embarrassed smile, she asked her friend "Sorry, what were you saying?"

"Where’s the pepper shaker?"

"Next to the stove," Dany answered immediately, then focused on making the green salad look really pretty before handing it to Grey to put on the table.

Missandei came into the kitchen and began filling glasses with ice. Not looking at her, she asked, "Is everything all right, Dany?"

She noticed that she kept her voice down. Her body stiffening with the strain she felt for lying to people she loved, Dany nodded her head. "I’m great. I don’t seem great?"

Missandei shrugged. "You appear distracted."

"I’m just busy focusing on making dinner," said Dany before grabbing several bottles of salad dressing and quickly leaving her alone in the kitchen. She felt really bad about it since her friend was truly concerned about her, but Dany didn’t want to deal with hers, Jorah’s and Grey’s reactions to her pregnancy that night. For the fifteenth time in the past three hours, she reminded herself that it *was* Christmas after all.

Missandei let it slide with just a look as they all sat down at the table full of food and started eating. Everyone complimented Daenerys culinary skills and were pleased for spending the Holidays together. "Grey if you get a belly after all of you’ve eaten, I am not sure I will want to be with you," she remarked, laughing.

"It’s all Dany’s fault. Besides, wouldn’t you like more of me to love?"

"No," Missandei answered cutely. "Damn you, Dany!"

"Huh?" Dany startled.

"Daenerys, where are you? You have been in another world all night," Missandei commented, a worried look on her face.

"I just have stuff on my mind," she answered lamely, not liking the looks on their faces. 

"Dany, it appears that whatever is on your mind is very serious. Maybe you should talk about it with us," Jorah suggested.

"Yeah," Grey agreed. "We’re friends, if you can’t talk about your problems with us, who can you talk with?"

Dany sighed, knowing denial was useless. They were her best friends and they knew her like the backs of their hands. "Fine, something *is* going on, but I don’t want to discuss it tonight. It’s Christmas, let’s just enjoy it."

Missandei gasped and looked around with despair on her face. "Oh no! That means it’s bad! Dany, you have to tell us what it is now! You can’t just say ‘yeah, something big, something bad, tell ya about it later!’ and expect us not to wig. “You’re scaring us to death. Even if your news is terrible, please share it with us so at least we know *what* we are worrying about or we can just let it go and focus on another thing."

Dany looked down in her lap and fought the tears that quickly welled in her eyes. Ever since her little meeting with Drogo the morning before, she had yet to shed a tear. Crying would only lead to self-pity, and that was something Dany had neither the time nor energy for.

Taking a deep breath, she decided just to get it out there. No amount of preparing them was going to help. "I’ve just discovered that I am pregnant."

It was almost comical watching the jaws drop. It was probably the last thing they had expected her to say.

Dany bit her bottom lip and waited for some kind of response. Any response! They were all looking away from her.

"So who’s the daddy?", asked Grey.

"Knock it off! It’s none of our business. We know it’s Daario, the rat bastard!" Missandei replied.

"Actually, it’s not," Dany said quietly.

Missandei frowned. "Wait a second, you slept with someone else? You didn’t tell me?"

"I... I didn’t know until yesterday," Dany told them, then continued when she saw how confused they all were. "You see, we went to that party in King’s Landing and I saw Drogo and confronted him about our non-relationship” Dany gave them a dirty look. She knew they were all thinking the same thing. They can’t figure their things out. Ever. “You saw that absurd argument we had in that party, but this is all I remember, after talking to you about it. Ever since, I have been having these dreams. You all don’t need the details, but they aren’t normal dreams..."

"Dany, you should’ve told me when these dreams started. Dreams can be telling, especially, those that are very bizarre. To say the least," Jorah interrupted.

"Please let me finish," Dany pleaded, very close to tears.

Seeing how upset she was, Jorah nodded. "Go ahead."

"The dreams… they were more than just dreams, but it didn’t make sense. It was like they were memories… but the things in them I don’t remember happening." Dany continued, "I had dreams of a certain nature that Drogo appeared in. But like I said, I knew it was more than just simple dreams. So when I found myself pregnant and I knew that it was impossible that Daario is the father and since I haven’t been with anyone since him, I knew that Drogo had the answers. I knew that he knew the truth behind my dreams, because he was part of them, so I went to see him."

"When?" Missandei asked.

"Yesterday morning." Dany answered. "He told me that my dreams were actually memories. When we went to King’s Landing last month, I didn’t just party as you thought I did. I guess we did have too much of that damn punch. What actually happened is that after that fight Drogo and I had, and you taking me out for a while, Drogo came after me and we started talking again and somehow we went to his apartment and…” Dany blushed. 

“And that was a month ago, and now you’re pregnant," Grey concluded.

Dany nodded. "I’m having Drogo’s baby."

Everyone was silent for another moment until Missandei sat up a bit straighter. "Okay, there’s more to this story, right? Because I don’t understand why Drogo is still in King’s Landing and why it is you forgot all this."

"There’s a lot more," Dany told her. "The punch had been added a new special thing that we all know what is...”

“Drugs… for sure”, Jorah said. 

“Yeah. Well, I don’t think I need to tell you guys what happened next…” said Dany in a sigh and continued, "The drink was spiked up and some of the gym guys were feeling very sick and one of them called Drogo and they left to help them to take the guys to the hospital. As I was sleeping, he thought he would be back before I woke up. Which he didn’t. When I woke up I was alone, in a bedroom I have never seen before and I just got up and left embarrassed. I just never brought the subject up again.”

"So you don’t remember you and Drogo hoping around because the punch had a little treat,” Missandei concluded. 

"It all would have been just that. As if nothing had happened, if I didn’t start having these dreams… and this baby," Dany said as her hand absently moved over her stomach. 

"What does Drogo think?" A quite perplexed Missandei asked her.

"Drogo doesn’t know how to explain it," Dany answered quietly, dreading the coming questions. 

“Really? He can’t? I’ll send him back to the Sex Education Class 101”, commented Grey.

Missandei gave Dany a small smile. "So is he coming to Dragonstone soon?"

Dany shook her head and looked down at her lap. "As far as I know, he has no plans to leave King’s Landing "

Grey was confused, "Does he want you and the baby to move there?"

"Drogo doesn’t want any part of the baby’s life. Well, that’s not true; he offered to give me money for things I will need," Dany informed them. "Actually, he wanted me to get an abortion, but I refuse."

Missandei couldn’t believe her ears at first, but the more she thought about it, the more sense it made. "Because he just opened the gym, and doesn’t want to be a dad, for it’d be too hard for him?"

"That’s what he says."

"Dany, I know that you love Drogo and I know that you see carrying his child as something truly special, but have you tried looking at it from another angle? You’re only eighteen years old. You’re in college and you have no job."

"Missandei! I can’t believe you’re saying this," Dany gasped.

"Well, he’s not really wrong, Dany. I understand that you *want* this baby, but look at the whole picture. If you have it, what are you going to do? Even if you can figure out what to do about the baby, what about school? You may be able to stay in the dorms while you’re pregnant, but what about after you have the baby. And what are you going to do with it while you’re in class?" Jorah asked, giving Dany a sympathetic look.

Dany stood up from the table, her body shaking with hurt, fear, but most of all anger. "I can’t believe you. I need your love and support more than ever right now and I get *this*! I know that there are a ton of reasons not to have this baby, but there is one very important one. I love it. I’m tired of giving up or being abandoned by the people I love. I’m not killing my baby!"

They all watched in stunned silence as Dany stormed to her room, finishing up their Christmas dinner.

"We really fucked that up," Grey remarked and they got up to leave, just after cleaning it all up for their friend.

*


	4. Of Family

"Daenerys??"

She turned her head away from the cell phone to look at her uncle "Yeah?"

"How does pizza sound for dinner?" uncle Aemon asked with a smile. "I don’t feel much like cooking and something greasy sounds good."

"Sounds great," Dany replied.

"Mushroom and olive?"

"Yeah, make sure they give us some of that garlic sauce with it," Dany reminded her. 

For the first time since she had told her friends about the baby, she actually had an appetite. Luckily uncle Aemon had been so preoccupied with a New Year’s gala he had coming up at the gallery that she hadn’t noticed his niece hadn’t left the house or had been eating like a bird for the past four days.

Once her uncle had disappeared back in the kitchen, presumably to call for the pizza and continue doing paperwork for the gallery, Dany tried to get back into whatever update had on Instagram, but found herself once again dwelling on the baby. Every day she got up and swore that this was the day she would tell uncle Aemon, but every night she went to bed sighing that she’d never had the nerve to do it. There just had never been a good time to tell her. Dany wasn’t sure what a good time to tell someone that their unmarried teenage niece was having a child of her own was, but it certainly wasn’t when her uncle was overworked and mega-stressed about a huge event for his art gallery.  
*  
Twenty minutes later, the doorbell rang and the pizza delivery boy. Aemon paid him for the pizza and walked into the living room. "How about we eat here tonight, sweetling?"

"Sounds fine with me," Dany replied, perfectly happy to stay just where she was.

"Good," uncle Aemon said as she set the pizza box down on the coffee table and went back into the kitchen. A moment later he reemerged with two plates and cans of Diet Coke in hand.

Dany eyed the sodas and wondered if drinking anything with caffeine was a good idea. She knew she had to limit her intake, but wasn’t a little bit allowed? After all, pregnant women ate chocolate. Deciding it wouldn’t hurt the baby; Dany popped open the can and took a sip while Aemon served her a slice of pizza. 

"Thanks," she smiled, picking up the plastic cup of garlic sauce that came with the pizza, pulled off the lid and dipped part of the crust in. "God, I love this stuff."

"This is so nice, just my little niece and I," Aemon grinned, patting Dany on the knee. "I’m sorry I haven’t been around much, Sweetie. It’s just that this gala is so important. After Friday night you and I will have a *lot* more time together. How does that sound?"

"It sounds really nice," Dany replied, smiling up at her uncle. It suddenly hit her how much she’d missed his presence the past few months. Ever since she had started college, they’d hardly had any time together.

"Good, because I think we really *need* some bonding. I almost feel like I don’t even know you anymore," Aemon sighed.

Dany gave her a strange look. "Of course you know me, Uncle Aemon. I mean, I may be a *little* different now, but you know me."

"I feel like there’s this whole other side of you, Daenerys, that I know nothing about. Not just since you started college, but for so long. I really don’t know that much about it, since you came to live here, after all your family died," Aemon explained, then tugged Dany up against her when she saw the sad look in his eyes. "Hey, let’s not get all melodramatic now. Instead, let’s get caught up with each other’s lives. How about all those handsome young men at your school? Are you dating anyone?"

Dany looked down in her lap, knowing that if she told Aemon about Drogo it would lead to trouble. She’d want to know why they weren’t dating now and that would lead right into the pregnancy category and she didn’t want to go there. Of course she *needed* to go there.

Taking a deep breath, Dany looked her dear uncle in the eye. "I’m not dating anyone, and I don’t plan on doing so anytime in the near future."

Aemon frowned and said, "Well why not, Daenerys? Is it because of Drogo? Sweetling, he left you over a year ago, don’t you think it’s time to *try* to move on?"

"Well, it is because of Drogo, but not what you think," Dany began, then slowly began to recount her drinking party tale to her bewildered uncle. From the events when she had first visited Drogo to her strange dreams she’d had ever since and finally the discovery that she was having a baby. After she had told him everything, Dany looked at Aemon and braced herself for her uncle’s reaction.

After being silent for a moment, uncle Aemon shook his head and quietly said, "I just can’t believe this is happening. You’re just eighteen years old and now you’re going to be a mother? Oh God, what about college? What are we going to do?"

"Uncle Aemon, please calm down," Dany begged, although grateful that at least he wasn’t screaming at her.

"What about Drogo? Does he know?"

Dany nodded and looked back in her lap. She’d learned to hate discussing Drogo with her old uncle. He was from a different generation and never truly accepted how things work in relationships these days. "I told him last Friday morning."

"And what does he have to say about this? I guess he’s forgotten all about the whole reason he left town, after he left you and he’s coming right back now?"

"No, he’s staying in King’s Landing. He says he can’t be a father because he has this life going on, owning a gym place, and..." Dany said wearily. "He actually wanted me to have an abortion."

"Well, at least it appears he finally has his head on straight," Aemon remarked.

Dany shook her head furiously, "Uncle Aemon, there is no way I am having an abortion."

"Daenerys, I know you think babies are cute and sweet and so much fun, but they are hard work, and they take money and if you have one now, your life is over. What about school?"

"I can go to school and have a baby. Millions of women have jobs and kids and they can make it work, why can’t I?"

"I knew the moment I saw that boy... knew he was trouble. Look what he’s done now, gotten you pregnant, come up with the most ridiculous excuse not to be responsible for the baby. He can’t be a father, because he has so much going on. I’m sure he has no intentions of *paying* for this baby," Aemon ranted.

Dany looked down again; "Actually, he told me that he’d give me all the money I needed."

"Oh, really?" uncle Aemon asked, his eyebrow quirking in surprise. 

"Yes, really," Dany replied indignantly, then continued in a quieter voice, "But I told him I didn’t want any of his money. I’m not going to let him alleviate his guilt by throwing a little money at me."

"Have you lost your mind?" uncle Aemon yelled, standing up from the couch, his hands on his hips. "Daenerys, do you have *any* idea how much babies cost? I assure you, your allowance is not *nearly* enough. So you decide to make a point to Drogo, but at the cost of your baby? That’s who is going to suffer. See, this is why you can’t be a mother; you don’t have the maturity."

Dany looked up at her uncle, someone whom she always looked up to, her eyes watery with tears. "I’m *not* getting rid my baby."

Aemon sighed and ran his hand through his hair. "Well, have you considered adoption? That way you won’t be getting rid of the baby and you can still have a life. Plus, that way the baby is going to have a better life. *Two* parents who are adults and have the maturity and money to care for it."

"I will do everything for my baby. It won’t want for anything. I already love it," Dany declared.

"Are you listening to what you are saying?" Aemon screamed. "*You* are planning on doing all these things for your baby, and how? You think you’ll do it with *my* money? You don’t have any, so I guess that’s what you’re planning."

"I’ll get a job or something," Dany answered quietly. "Don’t worry, you won’t have to pay for *my* mistake."

"Oh that’s for sure. I *refuse* to take care of this one, Daenerys."

"I didn’t ask you to," said Dany, before standing up and giving her uncle a cold look. "In fact, I’d rather die than lower myself to asking for help from you. You’ll probably always hate your own grandchild because you can’t stand Drogo for having a troubled past."

"You had better watch yourself, young lady. You’re under *my* roof!"

"Not necessarily by choice!" Dany retorted.

"Oh? Well, you’re free to leave anytime," uncle Aemon told her. "In fact, why don’t you go? You don’t need me; you don’t need Drogo, why don’t you just go get started on this wonderful life you’re planning on creating all by yourself. I’d hate for you to feel lowered by remaining in my presence."

Dany’s heart ached as she was torn between storming out the front door and falling to her knees to apologize and beg her uncle to help her. Instead, she slowly walked to the front door and opened it, then halting to look at him.

"Just remember that everyone makes mistakes."

She left before Aemon could answer.


	5. Of Surprises

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have draft until chapter 10, and I will try to post an update tomorrow.

"Hey man!"

Jon grinned as he entered the front hall of the Castle Black and found Edd standing there. "Edd! Have you been standing at the window, waiting for me?"

"You’re freaking hilarious," Edd replied, rolling his eyes. "So how was it in the Winterfell Manor? From the looks of your belly, Auntie cooked you up some good meals."

Jon mock-glared at his friend; he’d gotten used to Edd’s constant jeering of Winterfell in the two years that they’d been friends. Jon was raised by his mother’s brother and his wife and he had a very close relationship with them and their kids, who Jon considered as his siblings. Aunt Cat was the perfect mother figure for an orphan boy and both, Ned, whom he called father and her, were the best surrogate parents he could have asked for.

"Just because I had a few days with good food and relaxation doesn’t mean I can’t take you down." Little did he know, he couldn’t stop thinking about Dany and the baby. He didn’t even have the courage to talk about that with his parents. He knew they would have problems accepting his decisions. As a matter of fact, Jon had had a tough time accepting it himself.

"Yeah, all you’d have to do is sit on me and you’d win," Edd laughed as he followed Jon up the stairs to his room. 

"How’s everything going around here?" Jon questioned as he dropped his luggage on the floor and took off his coat.

"Quiet as can be. The guys have done minimal practice as Commander Mallyster ordered for the past few days, but they haven’t done a thing."

"Would you like to go for some practicing??" Jon asked, knowing that training was like an addiction for Edd. Besides, it would help him keeping his mind off Dany.

Edd grinned at him, "You know me so well."

"All right, give me five minutes to change, and I can kick your ass."

*  
"I can’t believe this," Edd lamented. "All this snow is killing me, man. It’s freaking cold and with everybody away for Christmas, there isn’t any good parties to go and make me warm. If you know what I mean." 

Jon chuckled at his friend’s logic. "Look on the bright side, Edd, our New Year’s party Friday night is going to be a hit."

"Yeah, but by then something *huge* will be happening, I just know it," Edd replied.

Jon smiled and tried to tune out their banter so he could once again focus on their practice. The Night's Watch Military training is tough but Jon really did love it. Besides being part of the campus truly helped the situation.

"Why don’t we start heading home, guys?," Jon suggested. He wondered if he ought to call Dany. Glancing at his watch, he saw it was already past eleven and decided that was a bad idea.

Jon sighed as he was reminded of Dany’s situation. Despite finding out that she was carrying someone else’s child, Jon couldn’t let go of his infatuation with her. All throughout his short visit home, he’d mentioned her when talking to his family members. He hadn’t really noticed it until the day after Christmas when his mother had smiled and asked him whom the infamous Daenerys was that he’d talked nonstop about. Ever since he had been aware of every time her name had slipped from his lips; and that had number had been high.

However, in his explanation to his aunt, Jon had informed her that Dany was just a freshman in one of his classes that he sometimes talked to at parties. He’d made it clear that while she was sweet girl, he had absolutely no romantic interest in her. He wasn’t sure if his mother had bought it, but since Daenerys definitely didn’t want a boyfriend and he wasn’t sure he could handle dating someone with a child, she would never find out that they had been anything more than friends. 

"I can’t wait until Friday. Kharsi is coming back into town that afternoon… we have that party… don’t expect to see me until next Wednesday, gentleman," Edd announced.

"Kharsi?" Jon questioned Samwell, since he had no clue what Edd was talking about.

"Edd’s new main squeeze," Samwell smiled.

Jon’s brow furrowed in confusion. "But I thought he said he could spend at the very least months with Sylvi and her long legs’?"

"You must have missed it, but Kharsi has longer legs and she doesn’t talk as much," informed him with a wry smile.

"Sylvi was a momentary distraction; Kharsi is… well she is damn fine, she’s smart without being too smart and she’s fun," Edd told them in all seriousness.

"Plus Kharsi didn’t run off to Arryn with one of the quarterbacks on the football team like Sylvi did," Samwell added.

Edd opened his mouth to retort, but was halted by Samwell holding up his hand as he noticed something moving. Jon moved closer to look over Samwell’s shoulder. "What do we got?"

"What are they doing there? Think it’s someone trying to break in?" Edd wondered aloud.

"I don’t know… they aren’t mobile anymore… just staying still," Samwell replied.

Jon started heading towards Eastwatch, "Let’s check it out, guys. Even if it’s just someone trying to break in, we can call the police."

The three of them briskly headed over to the building through the woods so that they could remain unseen. If there was a burglar, they didn’t want that person to inform the police that there were men wandering around in strange uniforms; no need to bring any unneeded attention to themselves and the Night's Watch militar program.

Instead all the found was a small figure huddled in front of the doors to Viserys Hall. It took Jon a few seconds, but he soon recognized that it was Dany that was on the ground with her knees pulled to her chest and her arms wrapped around her legs. She was shaking slightly like she might be crying.

"Is that…" Edd began.

"It’s Dany," Jon answered before stepping out of the shadows of the trees and walking towards her.

Edd and Samwell reluctantly followed. Jon had told them that Dany knew about the Night's Watch Military Training, but that didn’t make them any more comfortable walking right up to her while all dressed in black, in uniform.

Not wanting to startle her too much, when he was still a few yards away, Jon called softly, "Dany, what are you doing here?"

Dany lifted her head sharply in surprise and instantly began wiping her face, trying to hide the evidence of her tears, sarcastically. "Jon, this is a surprise."

"Yeah, it really is," Jon replied, crouching down next to her.

The other two men hung back, knowing something was wrong, but that this was not the time to start asking questions.

"The dorm is closed, I forgot," Dany told Jon.

Jon nodded and looked at her worriedly.

"They won’t open again until next week. Why aren’t you at home?"

"My uncle threw me out," Dany answered, averting her eyes. "I told him tonight… about the baby… he was furious and he told me to leave, so I took the next train back to Dragonstone, came here and…" she paused, trying to calm herself since her voice was growing hysterical, "I was going to just stay here until I could figure something else out, but they’re closed and all my friends are upset about this and still in Harrenhal so I can’t go to them. I don’t know what I am going to do, Jon."

He didn’t think it possible, but Jon managed to feel blinding anger and overwhelming sympathy at the same time. 

The idea of throwing one’s own flesh out on the streets because they had made a mistake was unfathomable to him. Sure, his parents had always put an emphasis on good morals and not having sex until getting married. They would have been far from happy if Jon’s sister had come home and announced she was pregnant had she been Dany’s age, but they would support her. As for her friends, Jon didn’t know any of them, but they appeared to truly care for Dany. He didn’t understand how they could let their personal feelings about her actions outweigh the fact that she *needed* their love more than ever. Clenching his fists, Jon tried to calm himself down.

His heart was breaking at the sight of her trying so hard not to show that she was terrified. She had no idea where she was going to sleep, how she was going to eat; she didn’t know how she was going to live. But still, Dany wanted to show him that she was brave, that she was a survivor and he needn’t worry about her. Jon would have found it rather admirable if he weren’t so overcome with the desire to pull her into his arms and swear to take all her troubles away. 

"Come on," he said, standing and holding his hand out to her. "You’re coming home with me. Our frat house is open."

Edd shot Samwell a questioning look, but knew it was useless; the other man has as little idea what was going on as he did. They hadn’t been able to hear much, so all they knew was Dany was having some sort of problem and Jon was taking her home with them.

Dany looked up at him in surprise. "Oh no, I couldn’t."

"Yes, you can," Jon assured her. "Come on, it’ll be fine. Besides, it looks like it’s your only option."

Dany shook her head. "I can probably get Jorah to let me stay at his place. At least for a night; then maybe I can find somewhere else to stay tomorrow. I don’t want to get you involved in my mess."

"And I don’t want you out here any longer tonight. You don’t even have a coat and it’s chilly out here."

Dany sighed and tried to decide what to do. She had lied about going to Jorah’s; he probably would let her stay there, but Dany *really* didn’t want to have to ask. It was humiliating, and hadn’t she already embarrassed herself enough in front of Jon and their friends?

Taking Jon’s hand, she used his help to pull herself to her feet. "All right, but just for tonight."  
Jon gave her a small smile of triumph. "Don’t worry, Dany, we’ll figure something out." Turning to his friends, Jon said "Guys, you remember Dany. Dany, you know Edd and Samwell."

Dany gave the guys a small, embarrassed smile as they both nodded to her. She couldn’t believe the turn her life had taken in the past week. She’d gone from a normal college freshman… to one of those movie-of-the-week girls. The question was- would she have a happy ending?

*

"Okay, *what* is going on?" Edd asked as he started putting his weapons in the locker alongside Samwell and Jon. 

Jon took a deep breath; it wasn’t exactly his place to tell people, but if Dany was going to stay at Castle Black for a little while, people were going to ask. He had to be able to tell them something. Maybe he and Dany could concoct a story if she wanted. For the time being, he trusted Samwell and Edd. "Okay, let’s keep this between us, though, all right?"

"You got it," Samwell replied as he and Edd nodded.

"Dany’s pregnant," Jon explained.

Edd’s eyes widened in shock. "What? I thought it was a miracle when you finally kissed her! When the Hell did you get a chance to get her knocked up?"

Jon frowned at Edd’s choice of words. It just wasn’t very respectful, and when it came to Dany, Jon liked people to speak respectfully. "It’s not my baby, okay?"

"Oh…"

"So that’s why you two stopped going out," Samwell mused.

"How did you know that we were hanging out?" Jon asked; he hadn’t told either of them a thing about Dany since he had returned home, and he hadn’t talked to them since before he had dropped Sam off at the bus station and found out the news from Dany herself.

Samwell shrugged, "You haven’t mentioned her all night. Normally we would have heard you overanalyze your relationship with her for the entire patrol."

Edd doubled over laughing and smacked Jon on the arm. "Man, he is *so* right!"

Jon rolled his eyes and ignored their teasing. "Anyway, she’s pregnant and her uncle kicked her out. Her friends don’t approve so she can’t go to them. I can’t very well leave her on the streets, can I?"

"Wow, that’s pretty harsh," Samwell commented, somber once again.

"Yeah," Edd agreed, "So what’s Daario going to do about this?"

"Daario?" Jon asked, thoroughly confused.

"Yeah, well you know how he and Dany hooked up a few months ago and- besides you- I haven’t seen her with anyone else," Edd explained, then smiled, "And trust me, I’ve paid attention enough for you."

Temper once again flared inside Jon as he was filled with rage against the boy he had never been a big fan of. His fists clenching, he ranted, "Son of a bitch! I never even thought of that!"

Seeing how angry his friend was growing, Samwell gently laid a hand on Jon’s shoulder. "Calm down, Jon, this is Dany’s business, not yours."  
"Not my business? Samwell, this is about the woman I.." Jon halted, not really sure what he had wanted to say, "I really like Dany.. more than that. I admire her, I respect her and yes, I really think I could fall in love with her. Daario’s going to hear from *me* about this!"

Their weapons were all in their respective places, so the three soldiers turned and started heading towards the elevators so they could head back up to Castle Black where they’d dropped Dany off before going underground to check back in after their patrol.

Shaking his head in disapproval, Samwell looked at Jon and said, "Look, I can understand your desire to make Daario pay. Hell, I wouldn’t mind punching him myself. But there’s something else you have to consider- how is Dany going to feel about it? She doesn’t even know that you know she slept with him, and I bet she feels pretty embarrassed for falling for his act. Now she’s pregnant and if you retaliate against Daario again and she hears about it this time, you might just make things worse for her."

"Damn, he’s right," Edd sighed, "Way to suck the fun out of things, Samwell,"

Knowing Sam was indeed right, Jon nodded his head, "I know.. I won’t go after Daario… for now. But if he provokes me…"

Once in the elevator, all three were silent, each in deep thought about one thing or another. When the elevator doors opened and they stepped out in the hallway of Castle Black, Sam looked at Jon once again.

"So what’s next?"

Jon shrugged, "For now all I can do is be there for her. Maybe I can help her find a more permanent home."

"I don’t believe it," Edd exclaimed, looking at his friend in disbelief, "you are still crazy for her, aren’t you?"

Jon looked away, not wanting to face his friend and show him that he was so clearly right. "It doesn’t matter what I feel for her anymore."

*

Gingerly, Jon knocked on his bedroom door with his free hand. The other was holding a sleeping bag under his arm. "Dany, is it okay if I come in?"

"Yeah, I’m dressed," was Dany’s muffled reply.

Opening the door, Jon found her sitting on the edge of his bed in the oversized gray t-shirt he gave her to sleep in. She was just staring at the wall, looking more depressed and lonely than Jon had ever seen her- a lot worse than when she’d been dumped by Daario. He wished he knew something, anything that he could say and make her feel at least a little bit better, but there was nothing. He didn’t have any answers to reassure her and make her feel less scared.  
Dany looked at him all of a sudden, her wide eyes filled with despair. "Do you think they are right, Jon? Am I being selfish and immature for not… having an abortion?"

Jon sighed deeply and sat down next to her, shaking his head. "I don’t believe in abortion. I mean, I patrol every night and work so hard to save lives. I know the value of human life. I don’t oppose women having the right to have an abortion, it’s just that if I ever… got a girl in that situation… I am fairly certain I would do all I could to come up with another answer."

"That’s how I feel too! This baby may not have come at the best time, and I may not be in the best situation, but it’s here. I honestly believe it’s a gift sent to me and I should cherish it," Dany replied, then smiled sheepishly. "I know that sounds corny, but I love this baby already, Jon."

Jon beamed at her, feeling things for her he knew he really shouldn’t. "I don’t think that sounds corny at all. I’m not at all surprised that you feel this way, it’s part of the reason I like you so much."

Dany let herself enjoy the tender moment before standing up and pacing in front of the bed. "I feel so bad for putting you out like this, Jon. I swear, I will figure *something* out as soon as possible, and be out of your hair."

"Don’t worry about it, I really don’t mind," Jon assured her, then bit the bullet and asked what he’d been wondering all night. 

"I just don’t know if I can handle another person that I love telling me to have an abortion or that I am being selfish," Dany sighed, then looked at him and felt guilty. She couldn’t let Jon help her any more than he already had. He was a nice guy and he didn’t deserve her mess. She’d have to find somewhere else to go the next day. That was the only way to be fair to him.

Jon nodded, then stood up and began rummaging around in his dresser. "I’m going to go change, if you want to get in bed."

"Sounds good," Dany replied, rolling out the sleeping bag on the floor. "I’m pretty tired."

"Don’t worry about that, I can make it when I get back in here. You take the bed, get some rest," Jon told her.

Dany shook her head, "Jon, I have already inconvenienced you enough, there is no way I am kicking you out of your own bed. The floor is fine for me."

"Dany you know I can’t let you do that," Jon protested, "I’m…. old fashioned. I can’t sleep in my bed while a woman sleeps on my floor. Especially a pregnant woman."

"Jon, I’m not *that* pregnant," Dany laughed, "It’s not like I am so huge I can’t see my feet anymore. I’m still in my first trimester."

"Humor me," Jon replied.

Dany sighed and nodded, "You’re making me feel very guilty, you know."

"Yeah, I know," he grinned, "I just love having a beautiful woman indebted to me."

Dany smiled shyly at him, "Beautiful? Even when my face is red and puffy from crying, my hair’s messed up and I am wearing your t-shirt?"

"Always," Jon replied softly, feeling desire course through him. Nobody had ever driven him as crazy as this girl. Feeling a little silly, Jon grabbed the clothes he’d pulled out of his dresser and headed to the door. "You can go to bed now if you want. I’ll be quiet when I come back."

"Okay," Dany nodded, "Goodnight, Jon."

"Night Dany," he said, opening the bedroom door.

"Jon?"

"Yeah?" he asked, turning to look at her.

Dany gave him a small smile, "Thank you so much.. for everything."

Jon returned the smile. "Anytime." 

*

"What did she say?"

Jon turned sharply to look at Edd sticking his head in the bathroom where Jon was changing. "What are you talking about?"

"About Daario… did Dany say if she’d told him or not? I mean, I’d be beyond shocked if she told him and he wanted to take responsibility, but I guess you can’t kick his ass unless she *has* told him and he *has* flaked on her," Edd said.

"Yes I can," Jon disagreed.

Edd smirked and lifted himself up so he was sitting on the counter. "Okay, you can, but it’s a lot more gratifying if it’s for a really good reason."

"I have a really good reason," Jon replied, pulling a shirt on over his head, "He used the innocence of a young girl to get what he wanted from her and didn’t care what the results were, the pain he left her in."

Edd looked at his friend in astonishment; "This is unbelievable! Look, Jon, for your own good, forget this girl. I mean, this is an honorable and totally *you* thing to help her, so find a place for her to live and get her out of this place."  
"What are you rambling about now?" Jon chuckled, shaking his head at his friend.

"You and your… obsession with Dany. Look, she’s a nice girl, and more than nice to look at, but she is *pregnant* and it’s with another guys’ kid. Are you planning on playing ‘Daddy’ now?"

"Yes, I have feelings for Dany, but I also like her a lot, Edd. I consider her a friend and I am there for my friends," Jon protested.

Edd nodded his head slightly and slid off the counter. "Think of it this way: even if you don’t mind tying yourself down, Dany’s not much more than a kid. If you play the knight in shining armor, she might think she’s in love with you. That might be all fine and good for a while, but sooner or later the fantasy will end and you might really regret it."

Jon didn’t respond, just contemplated Edd’s words as the other man left him alone in the bathroom.

*

As quiet as possible, Jon opened the bedroom door, hoping he wouldn’t wake Dany if she was already sleeping. Seeing his bed empty, he frowned and looked to see where Dany might be in the dark room. His search ended a few seconds later when he found her in the sleeping bag. She certainly was stubborn; he’d give her that.

Setting his dirty clothes in the hamper, Jon walked over to her sleeping form and crouched beside her so he could lift her in his arms. Pleased that she didn’t wake up, Jon carried her to the bed and set her down, pulling the bedcovers over her. Dany smiled in her sleep and he couldn’t help but return the smile as he gently stroked her cheek with the back of his hand. She was so beautiful, both inside and out… she meant so much to him… touched him in ways no other girl had done. It really wasn’t fair.

With a sigh, Jon turned and walked back over to the sleeping bag, climbing inside it. Dany really was a remarkable girl. She’d managed to completely turn his life upside down in the space of two hours. But still, he didn’t regret it, not for a second. He’d help her, any way he could. Hopefully in the morning the answers would be a little easier to come by.

*


	6. Of assumptions

"I just can’t believe it, you know? It’s not like Snow."

Samwell looked up as two of his fellow watchers and housemates, Pyp and Tormund, entered the kitchen. Wondering what they were saying about Jon, he asked, "What’s not like Snow?"

Tormund grinned as he poured himself a bowl of cereal. "Pyp says some chick was blowing chunks in the bathroom and she’s Jon’s guest. I thought you guys went patrolling last night? When did Jon get a chance to pick up some wasted chick?"

"Yeah, and since when is it his style to go for that?" Pyp added, "Jon’s really not the type to take advantage of an intoxicated chick and this one is young. I sure hope she’s legal."

"She’s legal, don’t worry," Samwell replied quietly.

"So you know about her? What’s the story then?" Tormund pressed for an answer.

Before Sam could figure out what to say since he wasn’t sure Jon and Dany wanted everyone knowing the truth, Edd walked into the room. "What’s the story about what?"

"Edd, you’ll tell us! If Samwell knows, you’ll know," Tormund said, "Where did Jon pick up a drunk girl last night? You guys go partying?"

"What drunk girl?" Edd asked, confused. The only girl he knew about that Jon had picked up the night before was Dany.

"Silver hair, short, pretty cute, despite the fact that she was puking up everything I would guess she ever consumed due to her extreme hangover," Pyp replied.

"Oh, you mean Dany? She’s not hung-over, she’s pregnant," Edd responded without thinking.

Samwell’s eyes widened in disbelief that Edd had just announced Dany’s condition. It was a matter of minutes before the entire house knew. Jon was *not* going to be happy.

"She’s *pregnant*?" Tormund exclaimed, "Shit! Is it Jon’s kid?"

Samwell simply shrugged, since he had no idea what Jon wanted them to know. He figured Jon probably didn’t want them to know anything at all, but thanks to Edd, he was going to have to tell them *something*.

"Of course it’s Jon’s! Do you think he’s gonna go out with a girl who is knocked up by someone else?" Tormund retorted, then pondered the idea for a moment. "Actually… he just might do that."

"Man, this is unbelievable," Pyp sighed. 

Edd sheepishly sat down next to Samwell at the table and poured himself some cereal. Since the other two guys were now talking to each other about this surprising revelation, he said quietly to Sam, "How badly is Jon going to kill me?"

*

"Feeling better?" Jon asked as Dany walked into his dorm room. 

He’d been awakened early that morning by Dany stumbling through the bedroom. Worried, he’d followed and found her getting sick to her stomach in the bathroom. Jon had held Dany’s silver hair back and tried to soothe her, all the while ignoring the bewildered look on Pyp’s face that he’d seen when he’d walked in. After all, the last thing the other guy had expected was a girl to run in the bathroom while he’d been shaving.

Dany smiled and nodded shyly. "I’m fine… just… thoroughly embarrassed."

"Don’t be," Jon replied, "Nobody came in while you were in the bathroom, right?"

He’d put up a note on the door, declaring the bathroom temporarily off-limits while Dany showered and dressed. If any of the guys desperately needed to relieve themselves, they could use the downstairs bathroom.

Dany nodded and giggled. "Actually, there was a line when I came out. I got some strange looks too. I think you’re going to have some explaining to do."

Jon shrugged, "Don’t worry, I’ll think of something."

"So… any plans for today?"

"No," Dany replied, plastering a smile on her face. 

Sighing, he opened it to find an apprehensive looking Edd on the other side.

"Can I talk to you for a second, Jon?"

Jon nodded and stepped out in the hallway, pulling the door shut behind him. "What’s up?"

Edd took a deep breath, "I accidentally told a couple of the guys Dany was pregnant."

"You what?" Jon replied, his eyes widening. "What possessed you to do that?"

"I didn’t mean to, man. I just let it slip. I’m really really sorry."

"Did you tell them not to tell anyone else?"

Edd shook his head, "No, because you know they would have wanted to know why and I don’t know what you want me to tell them."

"I cannot believe you did this… did they ask if I am the father?"

"Well, they *talked* about it… and I wasn’t sure if you wanted them to know it wasn’t your kid since she *is* staying with you. So I basically ignored them."

"As if this wasn’t hard enough for her… now she has to deal with *everyone* knowing!"

"I’m really sorry, man," Edd repeated.

*

Shaking his head at the latest problem they had, courtesy of Edd’s big mouth, Jon walked back in the bedroom. Dany turned quickly so her back was to him. He could tell it was because she was crying and she didn’t want him to see.

“What’s happening?” Jon asked.

“It’s just that I’m so overwhelmed by everything, by my uncle’s decision”.

"I’m so sorry, Dany."

Dany shook her head. "It’s not your fault."

"He was blessed with an amazing niece, and if your child is anything like you, a really great grandchild. And he’s just giving that up? Idiot!"

Dany shook her head and laughed. "Jon, you are undoubtedly the sweetest guy I have ever met."

Jon smiled down at her and gently stroked his hand over the back of her hair, enjoying at its silkiness. "I hate to do this to you now, but I don’t see how we can avoid it… Edd accidentally let it slip to a few of the guys that you’re pregnant. It’s only a matter of minutes before everyone in Castle Black knows."

Dany ran her hands over her face and shook her head. "You know what? It’s fine with me. I’m pregnant and I am staying this way because I am *not* having an abortion. So they are going to find out anyway."

"Okay, well I wanted to warn you," Jon said, "And… another thing… it’s a safe bet that since you are staying with me, they’re going to assume I am the father."

"Oh God, Jon… I didn’t even think of this! I’m sorry.. I’ll tell them you’re not."

"No, don’t worry about it. In fact, let them believe I am."

Dany raised an eyebrow in question.

"For the time being… until we figure something else out. We’ll have fewer problems about you staying here if they think that’s why. We don’t have to announce it’s my baby, but if they assume it we won’t deny it."

"Jon, you have to be the *only* guy in the world willing to allow himself to be called the father of a baby that’s *not* his," Dany remarked.

Jon grinned as he led her towards the bedroom door. "I’m a strange guy."

*

Dany took a deep breath as she followed Jon into the kitchen. The rest of the house had been empty, but the voices in this room could be heard from as far away as upstairs. Most of the guys were sure to be there.

Walking in, Dany immediately felt eyes on her. She stood awkwardly behind Jon as he smiled at everyone and gestured to her. "Guys, this is Dany. She’s going to be staying here for a while. Please try to be nice."

Dany was relieved when she was greeted with smiles. She noticed Samwell sitting at the table, giving her a friendly look as he showed them that he had two empty seats beside him. Dany sat in the seat next to him as Jon grabbed two bowls and spoons off the counter.

"Did you just want cereal? We’ve got tons of food. Bagels, english muffins… I could make you eggs," he offered.

Dany shook her head. "Cereal is great. I don’t want anything too heavy."

Jon sat down beside her and selected his favorite cereal from the various boxes on the table. Dany took the box after him and poured some in her own bowl while Jon looked for the milk.

"Aw, are we out of milk?"

"Grenn, you didn’t finish the milk, did you?" Tormund asked as he punched the arm of another man who had just walked in the kitchen.

Green gave the first guy a strange look. "Since when do you care so much if Snow doesn’t have milk for his Raisin Bran?"

Tormund looked at him like he was a moron. "Dany needs it! She’s eating for two now and she’s got to have calcium!"

Dany flushed as most of the other guys in the room started nodding and shooting dirty looks at poor Grenn. Jon just chuckled and shook his head before getting up and checking the refrigerator. Sure enough, there was a full gallon of milk.

"Aren’t you loving Edd right now?" Samwell joked quietly to Dany.

Dany just smiled.

*

"So where’s your little girlfriend?"

Jon looked up and saw Tormund standing in his doorway. He was still amused by the way Tormund has attacked Grenn about the milk that morning. The way all the guys had seemed to grow almost protective of Dany and her baby almost immediately had really surprised him. 

"She’s running an errand," he answered.

Tormund nodded and smiled at him, "You know, I never would have thought that you would get a girl… in this situation. You’re such a perfectionist. I guess accidents happen, though, huh?"

Jon nodded his head, making a point to keep quiet. He had a sneaking suspicion that the purpose of Tormund’s little visit was to fish for information.

"So, what are you going to do about this?"

"We’re not sure yet. The news is still… new."

Tormund looked surprised at how relaxed Jon was. He would have figured that until everything was taken care of, Jon would be a nervous wreck. He knew if he had knocked a girl up, he would be until she got an abortion or decided to keep the kid. And if they were keeping the kid, he’d probably be in a much worse mood than Snow.

When Tormund finally left him alone, Jon found he couldn’t get back into the book he’d been reading. Instead, he started thinking about Dany. She ought to be back soon, since she’d left over two hours before. He wasn’t sure how he felt about her going to their local Planned Parenthood. Hopefully everything he had heard about them being good about not pressuring a girl to make a certain decision was true. Jon wasn’t sure what decision he didn’t want her pressured into making was, he just felt nervous about it.

Sighing, he set the book down on his nightstand and got up off his bed. He might as well go watch football with the guys. The game was starting in twenty minutes, and if that didn’t distract him from Dany, nothing would.

*

It was two hours into the game before Jon realized that he still hadn’t seen Dany. Plus, it was getting dark out and he really didn’t like the idea of her alone for so long. He slipped from the living room unnoticed by all the other guys, as they were quite engrossed in the game, and started heading towards the stairs.

He entered his dim bedroom, intent on grabbing his coat so he could try to look for Dany when he saw her noticed her small form on top of his bed. Moving closer, he smiled as he saw she was sleeping on her stomach on top of the bedspread. There were little brochures scattered around her, so it appeared she had fallen asleep reading.

He was about to creep out of the room so she could continue her nap when Dany moaned and lifted her head, looking a little confused. Once she remembered where she was and why Jon was in the room with her, she smiled up at him. "I guess I fell asleep."

Jon returned the smile, pulling out his desk chair and sitting down. "You must have needed the rest. How long ago did you get back here?"

Dany looked at the clock and replied, "About an hour and a half ago."

"Did everything go okay?" Jon asked, trying not to be too intrusive.

"Yeah," she replied, sitting up so she was facing him. "They gave me another pregnancy test, which came out positive, so then I had a blood test, also positive."

"So, you’re definitely pregnant."

"Yup. They also gave me an HIV test, but I won’t get the results for a while," she added, not really worrying too much. With Daario she had used a condom and Drogo were always safe, except with this time when she got pregnant.

Jon, however, felt a spark of fear. After all, Daario had really gotten around and if he had gotten Dany pregnant, he could have given her a disease as well. Poor Dany; she really didn’t deserve any of this.

"I told them that I’m almost positive I don’t want an abortion, so we mostly discussed me raising my baby or giving it up for adoption. I took brochures on everything, though. I want to consider every option."

Jon nodded, "That sounds like a good idea."

"We also discussed financials.. Basically I have no financials, but they still referred me to a doctor and they gave me a bunch of sample vitamins," Dany answered, then sighed. "I’ve got to get a job!"

"Don’t worry about that right now, just focus on your future," Jon said.

"But that’s something I *do* have to consider. I mean, if I keep this baby, I have to support it. Am I going to be able to make enough money? Dragonstone is not big with the job opportunities. I have to not only find a job that requires no experience, but one that pays enough to take care of both of us."

Jon nodded in agreement, then gave her an optimistic look. "Hey, I know a lot of people. And as you can see, all the guys here would love to help you out. I’m sure at least one of us has a connection to get you a job."

"Really? That’d be *so* great!"

"Absolutely," Jon responded, then chuckled when he heard her stomach growl. "How about we go grab dinner? We’ve got a ton of greasy foods that are sure to clog your arteries downstairs."

"Ooh, that’s my favorite kind!" Dany grinned, forgetting momentarily that she had been too depressed to eat much before. Jon had a way of making her feel like everything was okay.

*

"So Jon, I don’t suppose I can assure Kharsi that if she brings her cousin Kharsi, we can hook the two of you up tomorrow night?"

Jon shot a dirty look at Edd and they patrolled the still-deserted campus. "Not funny, Edd."

"I wasn’t kidding," Edd replied, then sighed. "See, I knew this was going to happen. You’re getting all caught up in this Dany thing."

"Edd, how do you know that this has anything to do with Dany? If you’ve never noticed, whenever I was stupid enough to let you set me up, I regretted it."

"Whatever," Edd retorted. "The point is, your little… obsession… with Dany is getting you into major trouble. Already, you have no desire to see other girls. You’ll be content playing Candyland in your bedroom and getting her snacks while everyone else parties."

"Parties aren’t everything," Jon replied before marching ahead, hoping Edd would just drop it. He didn’t think his friend was right… but he didn’t know he was wrong, either.

Edd smirked at Samwell, who had been characteristically silent throughout their conversation, "You notice he didn’t *deny* it."

Samwell shrugged, "Jon likes Dany, and it’s not like she’s not likeable. I don’t see the harm."

"Thank you, Samwell," Jon smiled at his friend.

"Yeah, well I *do* see the harm. Jon, you’re going to get all caught up in playing house with her. I know she’s not one of those girls who use guys to get whatever they want… at least, I don’t *think* she is. Anyway, I know how you are and all your good intentions are only going to get you stuck in the same hole she is in."

"Don’t worry about me, I’m a big boy," Jon replied defensively. Normally he could brush of Edd’s distrust of women, but tonight he wasn’t going to put up with it. There was a girl in his room who was sweet, caring and wonderful. She had been taken advantage of, then tossed aside like trash. And as if she hadn’t suffered enough already, now her life was going to be changed forever, and most likely in a negative way. She certainly didn’t deserve Edd’s disparaging comments.

Edd just shook his head, knowing Jon wasn’t going to listen to him. He just hoped that even though it seemed highly unlikely, Daario took responsibility for his actions this time. Then Jon wouldn’t have to be Dany’s hero.


	7. Of unexpected options

"So, you moving out?"

Jon looked up at Tormund, in surprise. "Moving out?"

"Yeah," Tormund replied, smiling across the table. "I mean, Dany seems really great. She doesn’t act all high maintenance and all, but this is Castle Black - girls and babies don’t live here."

Jon looked down, pretending to check out his hand of cards, "This is just temporary, I don’t know where Dany’s going to live just yet. She’s got… problems… his uncle, the one who raised her, didn’t take the news all that well."

Tormund piped in, "Hey, did any of you guys know Mance Rayder?"

"Who?" Edd asked as he took his turn. He hoped Tormund was changing the topic because he really loved these poker games, but discussing Dany was only going to get him thinking about what Jon was getting himself into and he really didn’t want to go there.

"He used to live here a while back. I think he left before most of you guys got here. He was transferred to Dorne or something about a five and a half ago. Anyway, I guess it was over two years ago when his girlfriend gets pregnant. Mance was stuck like you, Jon, because he lived here and you can’t have your girl and your kid staying in your room with you. So he went and talked to his Commander and they set up this whole arrangement. He married the girl and since we’re special forces in the Night’s Watch and we don’t have regular base housing, they hooked him up with an apartment, rent-free, gave him a big raise to support his wife and kid. Anyhow, they set him up with a place, funds, and the baby would be taken care of for the rest of it’s life."

"All because he married her," Jon said, leaning forward as he thought about it.

Edd could see the wheels turning in Jon’s head and he really didn’t like it, "Marriage is a big deal, Jon."

"You aren’t kidding," Grenn chuckled, "I’d push for an abortion, myself."

"Jon’s not like you, Grenn" Samwell commented.

He nodded, knowing the other man was right. "So true, Samwell. For instance, I plan on experiencing a lot of life- namely women- before settling down. I figure I should be thorough… so I don’t plan on shackling myself to a woman for a good twenty years. Forty-five is a good marrying age."

"Sound about right to me," Tormund grinned, with Edd nodding in agreement. "I thought so,"smirked, "But Jon… Jon views marriage in a different light. He sees it as… well, not death."

The table erupted in laughter at Tormund’s exaggeration. Jon shook his head and said, "You really are extremely over dramatic."  
"I’m not," Tormund insisted, "hear me out. When you get married, you are saying goodbye to being a bachelor. It’s the same woman every day for… possibly the rest of your life. It is really the death of your life as you know it."

"You are really disturbing," Jon remarked.

Tormund shrugged, "You were raised in a completely different environment than I was. You have that whole ‘happy family’ thing going. I’m from a broken home- which makes me lack trust in the whole marriage thing."

"What about, Dany?" Sam asked.

"Her family died while she was little. She was raised by her much older uncle. Does that mean she’s as wary of marriage as you, Tormund?" he asked, truly curious, even though he knew the mere idea of marrying her was preposterous. As much as he *liked* her, he didn’t love her and that’s what marriage was for. Besides, he was only twenty-two. It would be one thing if he actually was the father of her baby, but he wasn’t. Giving her a place to stay and helping her get on her feet would be plenty.

"Nah, probably not. Chicks who lose their dads tend to really crave male attention. She’ll either go that way or the other extreme- totally not trust any guys further than she can throw them. And she doesn’t seem like that at all."

Jon smiled as he thought about how far Dany really could throw any guy, "She’s not."

"You should be able to figure this out yourself," Tormund said.

"Not Dany," Jon replied, shaking his head, "She’s not like any textbook case. She’s different."

Jon received looks of disgust from every person at the table besides Samwell, who simply smiled.

"Man, he is a goner," Tormund remarked, shaking his head sorrowfully.

"I am not!" Jon argued, ignoring the amused disbelief on Samwell’s face and the look of disapproval on Edd’s. They were all insane. He just *liked* Dany! They liked her too- he was just closer to her. So he felt an obligation to take care of her when nobody else in her life would- that didn’t make him in love with her.

*


	8. Of proposals

When Jon awoke the next morning, he found himself alone in the bedroom. He wondered where Dany had gone without waking him. She didn’t seem entirely comfortable in the house and generally didn’t go anywhere besides the bathroom without him. Shaking his head, Jon tried to stop himself from worrying that she’d left. Why did the idea scare him so much?

Getting out of his sleeping bag, Jon opened the bedroom door so that he could go find Dany. His search ended quickly when he found her in the hall, her hand reaching for the doorknob. She jerked in surprise, then gave him a weak smile.

"Did I wake you?"

Jon shook his head. "I don’t think so. I just woke up a minute ago and you were gone." Seeing that she was still in the shirt he’d given her for sleeping and obviously hadn’t showered or anything, he asked, "Were you getting sick?"

"Yeah," she nodded. "At least this time I didn’t scare anyone- the bathroom was deserted."

"Good.. Pyp’s going to get a complex otherwise," Jon chuckled. "Hey, do you want some saltines or something? I’ve always heard that helps. My sister-in-law had a baby two years ago, and she carried a box with her everywhere."

Dany shook her head and put her hand over her stomach, "I don’t think I could keep a thing down. I’ll be okay in a little while. I may feel sick as a dog now, but in half an hour I’ll be fine."

"Okay, if you’re sure," Jon said, even though he was concerned.

"I am," she replied, then went and picked up the clothes she had been wearing for the past two days. She wrinkled her nose at the thought of wearing them yet again, but what choice did she have? She couldn’t go buy new clothes with nothing but her good looks…. Which wouldn’t help anyway, because she wasn’t looking too great currently thanks to stress, depression and pregnancy symptoms. At least Jon had thought of washing them last night. She would hate to stink. But still… she couldn’t stay like this much longer. She needed clothing, money, and a home. And she needed it all right away.

*  
"Hello?"

"Jon?"

Jon was shocked to hear Missandei on the other end of the phone. She was the last person he would have expected to hear from,"Yeah, it’s me."

"Hi, um, I know it’s weird for me to call you, but I was just wondering if perhaps you’ve heard from Dany in the past couple days?"

Jon quickly tried to decide what to tell her. He wasn’t sure whether or not Dany wanted Missandei knowing where she was. She hadn’t seemed really *mad* at her friend, just abandoned. Still, he knew that even though Missandei may have let Dany down, she probably would change her mind and help her out. And wasn’t helping Dany the most important thing? She really needed Missandei’s support. Sighing, he made his decision and replied, "Yeah, I’ve seen her. I know about the baby and what happened when she told you guys. I assume you know her uncle kicked her out?"  
"Yeah, you see, I figured Dany was mad so even though I wanted to call her for several days I gave her space. I was going to see if she wanted to get tonight for New Years, and then we could talk and stuff, but I didn’t mean to disturb her on the cell phone in case she didn’t want to talk to me, so I called her uncle’s, he told me that Dany had left Harrenhal… I kind of got the impression he told her to leave."

"It went something like that," said Jon.

"So… she’s staying with you?"

Jon closed his eyes, not wanting to give away Dany’s secret- if it was indeed a secret, but also not wanting to lie. He was very bad at it. "Yeah, she’s here."

"Oh thank God, I was so worried!" Missandei exclaimed, "I mean, I know Dany is strong and resourceful, but how would she get a place to stay and food and everything without any money, you know?"

"Don’t worry, I ran into her the night her uncle kicked her out and brought her here. She’s been staying with me so she can try and figure out what she’s going to do."

"Thank you so much, Jon! I can’t begin to imagine what would have happened if you hadn’t helped her."

"I care about Dany, Missandei, there was no way I would leave her out there."

Missandei was silent for a moment. "You’re right; what you did was, well, it was something that *I* should have done automatically. I really let her down."

Jon didn’t argue, instead remaining quiet on his end of the phone.

Taking a deep breath, Missandei asked, "Do you think I can come over?"

*

"I hope you’re not mad, I just didn’t know what you wanted to do, so I tried to do what I thought would help you. At least this way you’ll get some of your stuff," Jon said as he sat down on the edge of the bed and watched Jon as she stood with her arms crossed over her chest in the center of his room. After getting off the phone with Missandei, he had come back upstairs to see if Dany was all done showering and dressing. Seeing that she was, he’d told her that her friend had called and that she was arriving on the evening train, hopefully with some of Dany’s clothes if Aemon let Missandei do it.

"Yeah, and I’m not at all mad," Dany replied. "In fact, I’m not sure what I am when it comes to Missandei. I mean, it’s not like she did anything really horrible to me. She just… she doesn’t think that keeping the baby is a good idea. And her reasons for thinking that weren’t wrong. I am young and I have no means of supporting the baby. I suppose you could say that it makes her a really great friend for stating her concerns instead of getting all caught up in how cute babies are and all that. It shows that she *does* care about me."

Jon nodded, "Yeah, she does. But on the other hand, I don’t think it would be wrong of you to feel a little angry. She didn’t support you when you needed it most. She could have set aside her own feelings for a while in order to let you know she was there for you. Even if she had the best of intentions, she screwed up."

"Still, I can’t hate her forever."

"Well I *did* say that you could feel a *little* angry," Jon smiled, "Hating her forever was not at all involved."

Dany chuckled, then sighed sadly and looked away from him, out his bedroom window at nothing in particular. "I’m just scared."

Jon frowned, "Scared of Missandei?"

"Yeah, sort of. Sort of scared of myself too," she replied. "I’m just… so unsure of what I want to do. I feel in my heart like I want this baby. I want to give birth to it and raise it… but in my head…. They’re all right, you know. I’m really not in a position to be a good mom. My head tells me that perhaps I could ignore my heart and have an abortion… or at least give it up for adoption. But I’m not sure I can live with it. My heart may make me feel guilty for killing or giving away my child for the rest of my life. Anyway, I’m just afraid that if *I* don’t know what I want and Missandei gives me advice… my decision may not be mine. I may do what’s ‘in my best interest’ and regret it forever."

"So… if Missandei starts to try and give her opinion about what she thinks you ought to do, tell her that you need some time to think about it on your own. You still haven’t had a chance to really catch up. Given some time, I think things will become clearer for you. You’ll make some decisions and feel more confident sticking by those decisions."

Dany turned her head towards him and smiled. "You’re a very wise man, Jon."

"I’ve always thought so," he said, watching her turn her head back towards the window as she became lost in thought. Jon realized he almost felt guilty. Before he had just felt unable to do anything… but now he knew there was another answer. An answer that meant Dany’s life could be a lot easier than she thought. She could keep the baby and not have to worry about housing or food or anything. But she wasn’t going to get to have that because he was too selfish. No, that wasn’t fair. He was only twenty-two. He had his whole life ahead of him, and besides, this wasn’t his baby. It was not at all wrong for him to not be willing to go that far for her.

So why did he feel so crummy about it?

"Ugh, I *have* to stop moping around like this!" Dany moaned, walking towards him and sitting down next to him on the bed. "What can we do to occupy ourselves?"  
Jon looked over at her face, utterly without guile, and forced himself to ignore the impure thoughts that filled his head. But it was *so* tempting to hold her chin in his had, tilt her face up, and kiss her passionately until they were both naked and quite occupied.

That was very wrong. She was currently very vulnerable. Besides, she was pregnant with someone else’s baby. He was a sick sick man for having sexual thoughts about her! It didn’t matter that he thought she was the most gorgeous woman he had ever seen. Dany was off-limits.  
"Um.. have you picked out all your classes for next semester yet? My schedule is all set, but I can tell you that picking out yours can kill a couple hours."

Dany looked down at her lap. "I’m not going back to school next semester."

"What?" Jon asked, caught off guard.

"I have to get a job and make money so I can take care of the baby. I don’t have time to go to school anymore."

"But people do it! I know it’s hard, but you can do it all. I’ll help you study and I really think your friends are going to come around… they’ll baby-sit," Jon argued.

Dany nodded and gave him a weak smile. "You’re right. People do it and I will be able to get help…. But I’m not going to be able to make a lot of money to begin with. It’s going to be hard enough to make the kind of money to have a place to live and food and everything else the baby and I will need. I can’t afford the thousands of dollars it takes to pay tuition and for schoolbooks. My uncle paid it before… and he doesn’t want to have anything to do with me."

Seeing her point, Jon’s shoulders slumped. She was absolutely right. "It’s just that you’re so smart. When you put your mind to it, you learn so much. I just know that given an education, you can go so far. Plus, with any job you choose, you won’t make as much money without a degree. You’ll probably…"

"Struggle all my life to make ends meet," Dany finished, nodding her head. "But what choice do I have?"

"It’s just… it’s really a shame, Dany. And it’s completely unfair."

"Hey," Dany said, reaching over and squeezing his hand. "It’s not that bad. Who knows, maybe I can get some kind of special scholarship. I just have to take some time off to get on my feet and then I can look into that."

Jon nodded, wishing he really did agree with her. As positive as she sounded, and as hard as he knew she could work at getting what she wanted, he feared that Dany was heading towards a very hard life. But he could easily turn things around. 

He could marry her and she wouldn’t have to quit school. She would have a home and food and money and everything… and he just had to do one little thing. It wasn’t even like he hated her; he adored Dany. He loved spending time with her. She was beautiful. He realized that he had never told himself he would never want to marry her… just that now was a lot sooner than he wanted to marry anyone.

It might not be so bad… and if he did this it would change *everything* for Dany… and that poor, innocent baby inside her. After all, it would suffer too. He knew Dany would do anything for her baby, but still… there was only so much she *could* do… unless he married her.

He opened his mouth to tell her about the idea, but stopped suddenly. Marriage was a huge deal. And it was for people who loved each other. To marry her for the wrong reasons… wasn’t that a sin? Even if it was to do something really good, it was not for the reasons he had been raised to believe one should have before getting married. Besides, was he really ready to quit dating? He didn’t know Dany *that* well. They could end up hating each other after a week.

Jon silently admonished himself for being a coward as he remained motionless next to her. Dany was quiet as she tried to think of something to talk about or do to take their minds off this. She didn’t need to feel sorry for herself and she wanted Jon’s pity even less.

Luckily, they were interrupted by a knock at Jon’s bedroom door. He jumped up and opened the door, finding Missandei and Grey on the other side. Immediately, he noticed that they held suitcases, which meant that they must have gotten Dany’s clothes. At least she had that now.

"Hi guys," he greeted, stepping aside to let them in.

"Hey Jon," Missandei replied as she walked in. Grey followed, exchanging nods with Jon+ 

Dany got off the bed and stood awkwardly facing her friends. "Hey."

Missandei set the suitcase down and wrung her hands nervously. "Hi Dany."

Grey set his own suitcase down and decided to bite the bullet. Taking a step closer, he hugged Dany tightly. "Hey Dany! I’ve been worried about you. You’re not mad at *me*, right? Because, if you didn’t notice, I never said anything bad. I was just shell-shocked. Missandei was the evil one this time."

"Grey!" Missandei shrieked and slapped the back of her boyfriend’s head as Dany smiled. It was a genuine smile, Jon realized, something he hadn’t seen too many of from her lately. He was very glad her friends had come, because he loved seeing her happy.

"Hey, I am not wrong," Grey argued, then pulled a king-size KitKat bar out of an inner pocket in his coat. "I also brought this for you to ensure that I have your love."

"Aww," Dany replied, taking the candy bar and holding it to her chest affectionately. "Okay, I love you forever."

"Dany, I’m really sorry," Missandei apologized, taking a tentative step closer. "What I said… it was wrong. Even if I don’t think keeping the baby is best, if it’s what you want, I support you. I’ll support any decision you make."  
The two girls embraced and Jon felt a little more happiness for Dany. She really needed this. Suddenly, he also felt uncomfortable, like he was intruding on their private reunion.

Moving towards the door he said "I’m just going to go… elsewhere… so that you guys can be alone."

"No, Jon, don’t go, please," Dany said, giving him a pleading look.

Jon was taken aback, but nodded his head and smiled before going and leaning against the edge of his desk. Relaxing, Dany sat back down on the bed with Missandei and Grey sitting on each side of her.

"Your uncle let me get some of your stuff. I got a lot of your clothes, plus your hairdryer and curling iron, all the hygiene stuff, make-up… hopefully everything you’ll need for a while," said Missandei.

"Thanks Missandei, it’ll be so nice to have my own stuff. Poor Jon’s had to lend me his clothes," she smiled. "And I can wear make-up… I am looking especially awful lately, so I would love to cover up."

"Oh please, Dany you look gorgeous as always," Grey argued with a grin. "By the by, I have a proposition for you… I know it’s not the Ritz, but do you want to come stay with me?"

Dany glanced over at Jon before plastering a smile on her face. "You really wouldn’t mind? I mean, then I could get out of poor Jon’s hair."

Jon tried not to ache at the thought of Dany leaving. Why did it bother him, anyway? Grey was her friend, it’s not like she’d be staying with some jerk that would try to take advantage of her situation. He realized he just didn’t *want* her to leave…. He’d miss her.

"Absolutely not. You may have to come in the back door, though… my tenants probably wouldn’t be thrilled… they might even try to charge me more rent."

Seeing his chance, Jon stepped forward. "You know, I really don’t mind Dany staying here. And none of the guys have a problem with it. She can keep staying here until we figure something out."

Dany was torn; on one hand, she didn’t want to cause problems for Grey, but on the other, she didn’t want to be a burden for Jon. "Are you sure? I feel so bad about doing this to you, Jon."

"I’m absolutely fine with it," Jon assured her, hoping nobody would protest.

"I wish I could have some offer for you," Missandei said.

"Yeah, I understand," Dany replied, then laughed humorlessly, "Hey, my own family don’t want me in his home…".

Jon remained, for the most part, silent while Dany talked things over with Grey and Missandei. He used the opportunity to once again think over the marriage thing. When he had thought she might be leaving him, he realized that he had been fairly close to distraught over it. It made him see how much he really liked having Dany around. He enjoyed being with her more than any other person he had ever met, girl or not. And even though marriage was a much bigger step and something he would normally never think of for a much longer time… if she needed it now, he didn’t think it was such a bad idea.

After about half an hour, Dany’s friends decided to head on their way, promising to give her a call soon. Jon and Dany were left alone… Jon knew it was his opportunity to tell her about the other option. He just had to work up the nerve…

"Jon, I really am sorry about this. I swear, Monday morning, I will be out applying for jobs," Dany swore.

"Actually… I have another option," Jon said, "One where you would have a place to live, food, money… everything. This option would mean you could keep the baby and stay in school."

Dany gave him an incredulous look. "That sounds *way* too good to be true. What do I have to do, sell my soul to the devil?"

Jon chuckled nervously and replied, "Marry me."


	9. Of surprises

"What?" Dany asked, thoroughly confused by Jon’s statement.

Taking a deep breath, Jon explained "Last night the guys felt the need to discuss your… our… predicament. Someone mentioned that there was this guy in the Night’s Watch a while back who got his girlfriend pregnant. Anyway, they got married and because the Night's Watch is special forces and they want to keep it that way… they hooked them up. They paid for them to have their own apartment, gave them extra money, everything. I am thinking I can get them agree to pay for your schooling for that very reason."

"Oh my God," Dany gasped, "This is unreal."

"Look, I know it’s not entirely honest, and that bothered me at first too… but this is like one of those gray areas. Sometimes lying can be a good thing, you know? And this way you and your baby will be all set up. I’d say that’s a great reason."

"You’re willing to marry me? This isn’t your baby, Jon. You have absolutely no obligation."

Cautiously, Jon took Dany’s hand. "Dany, I care about you. I want to help you out. You’re my friend, you know?"

"Yeah, but this goes far beyond friendship, Jon! Marriage is… big!"  
"I know, I’m aware of that. But think about the whole picture. This could make both yours and the baby’s life *so* much better. It’ll be easier on you… and you can give a lot more to the baby."

"I can’t believe you are saying this. Jon… it’s insane. I mean, I know you are a nice guy, but *I* screwed up, not you. And yes, marrying you would be improving my life greatly, but it would screw yours up."

"I wouldn’t say that."

"Oh yeah, getting married young to a girl you just went out for a couple of times who is pregnant to another guy’s kid is a dream come true for you," Dany replied sarcastically.

Jon sighed, "Dany, hear me out. I heard about this last night. At first I tried to brush it off for that very reason, but I couldn’t stop thinking about it. I’ve had quite a bit of time to think about this and I really don’t think it’s a horrible idea. I wouldn’t mind it. Don’t you trust me to make decisions for myself?"

Dany shrugged her shoulders and looked down. "I’m worried you are getting too caught up in the idea of helping me… and you’re not really thinking things through. Marriage, Jon…. it’s like a lifetime thing."

"It doesn’t have to be," Jon replied. "We could get married for a year or something… agree that when the year is up, we get divorced. You can get full custody of the baby, you know I won’t fight it, of course… and at the very least you get health insurance and money from the U.S. Military."

Dany stood up and crossed her arms over her chest as she once again gazed out the window. "You have this all figured out, don’t you?"

"Like I said, I thought this through."

Dany nodded her head and turned around to face him. "I thank you for your generous offer, but no I won’t marry you."

"Dany, please be reasonable!" Jon pleaded, standing up and walking over to her.

"You’re telling *me* to be reasonable? You want to get married and we have only known each other for months! You’re not even romantically interested in me!"

"I never said that."

"Fine, we are not romantically involved."

"I didn’t mean that we had to have a ‘real’ marriage. We can have separate beds and rooms and everything."

Dany was silent for a moment, trying to come up with an answer. There was no way she would agree to this. "Jon, you may be willing to do this, but I am not willing to let you."

"You know, it’s one thing for you to not want to kill the baby and raise it in a life without a lot of money and everything…. But this is by far not a horrible thing to do. I’m not going to expect you to be a wife to me. I’m not going to try to take your baby away. All I am going to do is help you provide for your baby. *This* is the best thing for the baby. If you’re going to be a mother, you have to start thinking that way."

"You’re saying I’m already a bad mother?"

"No… I’m just saying that you are young and you are acting that way. However, now you have to grow up real fast."

Dany nodded her head and looked down. "I see. Look, why don’t you keep your wisdom to yourself? I’m not getting married."

Jon watched as she rushed out of the room, shutting the door soundly behind her. He had no idea what to do. He’d figured Dany would say no at first, since she really didn’t want him to be inconvenienced by her, but she would see what a good idea it was and change her mind. He supposed it was rather pig-headed of him to actually expect Dany to be full of gratitude towards him. Plus, just because she was pregnant didn’t mean she wanted to give up her life to be married to him any more than he did for her. A commitment like that at age eighteen….. pretty scary stuff.

Instantly, he regretted trying to get her to agree by implying if she didn’t, she was a bad mother. He hadn’t meant it. Jon knew she was scared and confused. But how was he going to get her to see that this was the best thing to do? Well, time had worked for him. Maybe if Dany could think about it for a while, she would see things his way.

Now all he had to do was find her… before she got herself into even more trouble.


	10. Of hopes

Dany rushed down the stairs, intent on getting as far away from Jon as fast as she could. She couldn’t bear to deal with his disapproval. Not after all she had gone through with everyone else. He’d been the only one who had understood her, who had supported her without judgement… but now that had changed.

"Hey."

Dany skidded to a stop to avoid smacking straight into Samwell at the foot of the stairs. "Hi."

"Everything okay?"

"Um, yeah…I just need some fresh air," Dany replied.

Knowing that something was indeed wrong, Samwell suggested "How about I go with you? We could take a ride?"

Dany didn’t really feel up for company at the moment, but then again, Samwell didn’t ever give her the impression that he was much of a talker. "Sure."

*

Jon searched through the entire first floor of the house and didn’t find her. He didn’t want to start asking around because he didn’t want questions, but Dany was gone and he was worried. Finding Tormund alone in the kitchen, he decided to take a chance.

"Hey, have you seen Dany?"

"Yeah, I saw her getting in Sam’s car with him a few minutes ago," Tormund answered. "Is something wrong?"

"No, I just had to tell her something before she and Sam went out and I was hoping to catch her," Jon told him before leaving the room. He didn’t want to give him a chance to ask *where* his girlfriend and best friend were going without him.

Jon headed back up to his room. As badly as he wanted to talk to Dany, he’d have to wait. At least he knew she was with Sam. He’d do everything he could to keep her from running off… and he wouldn’t say anything to deter her from marrying Jon. At least he was better than Edd….

*

"So, what did you fight with Jon about?"

Dany’s jaw dropped in surprise as she looked at Samwell across the table. "How did you know?"

"Well, for one thing, you just told me," Sam smiled, "Anyway, I could tell."

"It’s always the quiet ones," Dany replied, then took a deep breath. "I guess you know about this whole deal where if Jon marries me, the military will take care of the baby and I?"

"Yeah, I was there when Tormund told Jon about it. I take it Jon decided he would go for it?"

Dany nodded and stuck a french fry in her mouth. "He’s totally nuts. I mean, I’m *pregnant* and it’s not with his kid. He hasn’t even graduated college yet. Why in the Hell would he want to marry me?"

"He likes you a lot," Samwell replied, glad that he had gotten Dany to agree to stopping for lunch at the coffee shop. He’d hoped they could talk things through and it appeared to be working. "If he marries you, this whole pregnancy thing isn’t going to be so hard on you."

"I know… but this is a going way above and beyond what a friend would do. Marriage, Sam! Marriage!"

"Yes, marriage is a big deal. However, Jon decided he wanted to do it. Nobody persuaded him. If he didn’t want to… he probably would have never even told you about it."

"But Jon’s not like most people. He loves to help. I’m just afraid he is getting so caught up in the idea of helping me that he’d not really thinking about what this really means."

"Are you sure it’s just Jon you’re worried about? Maybe you’re a little scared of it yourself?"

Dany sighed and mulled it over. "Yeah, you’re right. I mean, I’m just eighteen. And I know I don’t get to be a regular young woman now because I’m going to be a mom, but couldn’t getting married without really knowing the other person be just making things worse?"

"Well, yes, but you two get along. And I’m not so sure that Jon really thinks you two are going to be… like most married people."

"No, he said we wouldn’t. He said we could have separate rooms and that after a year we could get divorced. We already would have agreed that of course he wouldn’t try to get any custody and the baby and I would have financial support and health insurance. So, it’s not a real marriage, but… well I always have this idea of what getting married would be like. Jon… well Jon is very possibly the kind of guy I dreamed of marrying, but not under these circumstances."

Sam nodded, "It’s not romantic… but it really is the best thing for you and your baby."

"I just," Dany started, trying to compose herself. She seemed to start crying at anything these days. "I won’t do this and that’s that."

Samwell sighed, not really knowing what to say. How on Earth would they ever be able to convince Dany to go along with this?

*

Jon was just starting to get into the football game when there was a knock at his bedroom door. Setting down his hoagie, he rolled from his position on his stomach off the bed before standing up and walking to the door. Relief washed over him when he saw Dany on the other side.

"Hey," she said quietly, granting him a little smile.

"Hi, um… come in. Look, I want to tell you I am so sorry. It was completely wrong of me to say what I said to you. I didn’t mean it and I only said it because I really feel that marrying me would help you so much and it’s worth it. I know I shouldn’t have tried that… but I was desperate."

"It’s okay, Jon. You know, it’s partially true. There are a lot of reasons why I really should do this, but there are several reasons that I can’t."

Jon nodded and sat back on the bed. "I understand that, I do."

Deciding a subject change was in order, Dany said "So I hear you guys are having a party tonight?"

Jon went along with it, "Yeah, I’ve been meaning to talk to you about it. I figure you probably aren’t in a party mood, so we could hang out up here or I can check and see if we could see a movie or something."

"It’s New Years Eve, the theater closes at six," Dany said, shaking her head.

"Oh, well I could think of something else to do. Or we could just go somewhere else."

"You just don’t want to go to your party because of me?" she asked.

"Well, like I said, I know you aren’t in the mood," he answered. "And I would rather spend time with you than be at the party."

Dany smiled and sat down beside him. "You’re a really sweet guy, Jon."

"Thanks," he grinned, then moved back into his position on his stomach with the rest of his hoagie and a bag of chips in front of him. "Want some?"

Dany shook her head, "I already had lunch. You know, staying with you guys I have realized something. You only eat foods that don’t require utensils."

"That’s right," Jon joked, "then we don’t have to wash nearly as many dishes."

"I figured as much. You know… a party doesn’t sound like such a bad idea."

"Yeah?" Jon asked, surprised.

Dany nodded and smiled. "Hopefully Missandei packed my leather pants."

*


	11. Of parties

"Thirsty?" Jon asked as he and Dany slowly walked through the crowded living room of Castle Black. The party had just started a half-hour earlier and already the house was rocking.

Dany nodded her head and smiled up at him, "That’d be nice."

Jon grabbed her by the elbow to stop her from going over to the punch bowl and instead led her to the kitchen. Seeing her quizzical look, he explained "Just in case the punch is spiked. I know none of the guys who live here would do it and I doubt anybody else would, but I really don’t want to take chances with you… in your condition."

"Good idea," she agreed as they entered the empty kitchen. Dany hadn’t realized how loud the rest of the house was, but she was really appreciating the quiet.

Jon opened the refrigerator and pulled out two bottles of water for the both of them, then checked out the freezer and looked at Dany. "Do you *really* want pizza and chips for dinner?"

"What’s the alternative?"

Jon pulled out a frozen lasagna, "How’s this?"

"Ooh… that sounds really good. How long does it take, though?" she asked. Hopefully it was fairly quick because her stomach was on the verge of growling.

"Well, we could have a snack while we wait. Chips make a bad dinner, but a *great* appetizer."  
Dany laughed and nodded, "It’s a plan."

*

"Jon, there you are!" Tormund exclaimed as he entered the kitchen and found Jon and Dany rinsing the dishes from their dinner to put in the dishwasher. "Hi Dany."

"Hi," she replied, giving him a smile.

"What’s the matter?" Jon asked, hoping nothing was broken or anything equally bad.

"We were just wondering where you were. It’s after eleven and you’ve been gone for hours. We were afraid you’d miss the big countdown."

"Don’t worry, we’ll be out of here in a while… we’ll be there for the countdown," Jon answered.

Dany looked up at him and said, "Why don’t you go ahead? You’ve given up most of your evening to be with me, I can finish this."

"I couldn’t do that, you’re our guest," Jon protested. "I’m not going to leave you here to wash dishes while I party."

"It’s fine," Dany assured him, "In fact, I wouldn’t mind a little bit of time alone. Plus, there’s not that much left to do. I’ll be out there in a few minutes."

Jon wanted to insist on staying, but he could tell Waylon would make a big deal out of it, some way or another. And he definitely didn’t want to suffocate her…Nodding, he dried his hands on a towel. "You’re sure?"

Dany smiled and nodded her head as Tormund led Jon out of the room. She couldn’t believe how late it was, the night had gone by so quickly. It was strange, she never usually let time get away from her like that. The only other times she had done it had been with Drogo…  
Dany closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She couldn’t let herself do that. Jon was a great guy, but she couldn’t let herself feel for anyone what she felt for Drogo. She couldn’t give them the opportunity to hurt her like that. Besides, what were the odds of Jon truly feeling anything romantic towards her now that she was expecting Drogo’s baby? No matter what he had felt before, he only felt pity for her now. Getting his feelings confused would only break her heart…. again.

And she refused to do that.

*

"So some of the guys did a patrol, right?" Jon asked Tormund as they drank beers in the living room.

"Yeah, but they didn’t find a thing. I wonder when things will pick up again," Tormund answered. "Not that I am minding the break at all."

"I know… it just makes me feel uneasy."

"Relax… you are one tense Dude," Tormund laughed, "So… you talk to Dany about tying the knot?"

Jon looked down, "Uh… yeah, but we’re still undecided."

Tormund raised his eyebrows, rather surprised that she hadn’t been jumping for joy. Then again, Dany wasn’t like most other girls he’d met… so he really shouldn’t be surprised that she wasn’t the type who dreamed of getting married. But it would happen; he just knew it.

*

Dany sighed and pushed open the kitchen door, walking into the living room that was even more packed with partygoers. She had a feeling this was a fire hazard, but nobody else seemed to mind. After a moment, she spotted Jon on the other side of the room talking to a group of people, but was reluctant to join him. She’d been attached to his hip for the past two days and didn’t want to suffocate him. Dany had been to many parties before and she hadn’t had a problem socializing.

Putting a smile on her face, Dany started moving her way through the room, looking for any familiar faces. Almost immediately, a voice behind her called her name. Turning, she saw a boy from her English class smiling at her.

"Hi," she grinned, trying desperately to remember his name, "Olly?"

"How you doing?" he asked, apparently not having a problem with being called Olly.

"I’m great… enjoying the time off school. You?"

"Pretty much the same. I was in Eastwatch visiting family and I just got back in town yesterday. Were you in Dragonstone the whole time?"

"Yeah, I’m actually from here," she replied, opting not to mention her ‘trip’ to King’s Landing. She certainly didn’t want to have to tell Olly-from-English-class what she was doing there.

"Hey, want a beer?" he asked as he offered her a bottle of Budweiser.

"Um.. no thanks."

"Come on, its New Years! The beginning of a new year. You gotta celebrate."

"I can celebrate without drinking," Dany replied.

"Come on, this is college, you gotta…"

"I don’t want to drink!" Dany repeated more vehemently.

Olly took a step back, a surprised look on his face. "Okay… sorry."

Dany ran her hands over her face and sighed. "No, I’m sorry. I’m just… I shouldn’t be here. I’ll see you around, okay?"

Olly nodded, confused by her behavior. Dany realized that if couldn’t be like before. *She* wasn’t like before. Even if she was only a month along, she was a mother now. She had a whole new set of problems. She couldn’t drink and have fun like the rest of them because she was carrying a baby. She couldn’t go to school because she needed money. She wasn’t a kid in any way, shape or form anymore.

She started walking up the stairs, hoping to sit around and watch the countdown from the privacy of Jon’s room. However, she stopped when she heard a voice behind her.

"Hey Dany, need some company?"

Dany jerked around to see Daario standing at the foot of the stairs, smirking up at her. She was so shocked that he’d even acknowledged her existence that his words didn’t register with her right away. "Daario?"

"Normally I’m not really down with repeating history, but I’ve been drinking and who knows… the world could end at midnight tonight. Let’s go out with a bang, Dany," Daario said, before he began laughing at his own joke.

Dany’s back straightened and her fists clenched in anger. In that moment, she couldn’t believe she had ever fallen for Daario. She was about to march down the stairs and beat the crap out of him, not caring who saw her beating up a guy twice her size, when she saw Jon tap Daario on the shoulder.

Daario looked over at Jon. "Hey man."

"Hey," Jon replied, before pulling his fist back. "Haven’t you done enough to Dany already?"

Dany was already rushing down the stairs when Jon’s fist connected with Daario’s face. Daario didn’t know what was going on as Jon grabbed him at the collar with both hands and began shaking him. "You little asshole, you don’t deserve to lick the scum off her toilet! I can’t believe you had the nerve to sleep with her and then treat *her* like *she* is the trash!"

"Jon, it’s okay," Dany tried calming him, all the while bewildered. How did he know what had happened?

"No, it’s not okay," Jon said, "Not only does he have sex with you and dump you, but then he’s put you and your baby in this situation… and now he wants to sleep with you *again*?"

Dany was completely confused. How did Daario put her in this situation? "What are you talking about?"

"You don’t deserve her! It’s almost a good thing that you aren’t involved with the baby because it’s *Dany’s* baby, which means it is too good for you too," Jon told Daario before tossing him against the wall and pulling his fist back again to pummel him. Luckily, Sam appeared and grabbed Jon’s arm, pulling him away.

"He’s not worth it, Jon," he told his friend as he dragged him away.

"Look what he’s done to Dany!"

"I know, but if you do this in front of everyone, you’ll only make it worse for her," Sam reasoned, gesturing to the small crowd of people staring at him. Luckily, most of the party hadn’t noticed but still… there were quite a few of them.. plus Dany. She was standing there with her arms hugging herself, looking more hurt and embarrassed than he’d ever seen her.

Jon took a few calming breaths and nodded, letting Samwell know he wasn’t going to go after Daario again. He took a step towards Dany, hoping to apologize, but she turned around quickly and pushed her way through the crowd in an attempt to escape him.

Shaking his head, Jon groaned before giving Sam an apologetic look and heading after her. Dany was tiny and was able to push through the people in the house with relative ease. It took him a lot longer to move, and he quickly lost sight of her.

Hoping that she’d been heading towards the kitchen door, since that was the closest exit from the house and she seemed to want to get away from people, he went that way. Jon knew he really needed to find her fast; she was far too vulnerable in her mental condition as well as pregnant to be out on her own at night in the city, at New Years’ Eve.

At long last he made it to the kitchen, then had to push himself through a crowd of guys who were cheering on a couple of guys playing Ten Shot Drop, but soon found himself opening the kitchen door and entering the cold night. He hated the thought of her being out there and- even worse- the way she was probably feeling. 

And it was all *his* fault this time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next updates, tomorrow!


	12. Of tomorrow

Dany walked blindly down the path, not really paying attention to where she was going. She didn’t care where, she just had to keep *going*. At that moment, she hated herself more than anything. Sure, Jon had humiliated her, Daario had treated her like crap and Drogo… had made yet another decision with no regard for her feelings… but she had let them. All of them had only been able to do what they had done to her because she had put herself in a position to give them the chance. She’d been too trusting, too pathetic and allowed her explosive temper get the best of her and made bad choices. Now she was going to pay for them.

Noticing a bench a few feet off the path, Dany sat down and crossed her arms over her chest in an attempt to keep the cold air from bothering her. What was she going to do? She certainly couldn’t spend the night out there, but on the other hand, she was far too humiliated to face Jon and all his friends. Dany had no idea that he’d known about Daario. He knew what a fool she was… and he thought this was Daario’s baby. It was even worse than she’d originally thought. Jon thought she was some sweet little naïve girl who’d been seduced by the wicked campus sleazebag and gotten herself knocked up. How very pathetic. Of course, the fact that the truth wasn’t *that* far off and was possibly even more pathetic didn’t help matters.

Sighing, she shook her head to stop herself from going over the details of the past few minutes over and over in her mind. It wasn’t going to help her. If she couldn’t go back to Castle Black, Dany had to figure out where else to go. Grey and Missandei couldn’t help her… she didn’t know if Jorah was back in town… 

Maybe she should just have an abortion. There were so many problems *because* of the baby… if it was gone, her problems would disappear as well. She could continue on as she had been before. 

As soon as the idea came to her mind, Dany dismissed it. She couldn’t be without this baby already! She hadn’t lied when she said she already loved it. Grey and Missandei did not have the means to put a roof over her head, so they weren’t an option either. That left Jon and… maybe Jorah.

Jorah loved her; she was sure of it. He was better at the whole unconditional and platonic love thing. He hadn’t shamed her when she had given her virginity to Drogo, or so many of the other mistakes she had made over the years. Jorah would probably let her stay with him, even if he didn’t agree with her decision. The only thing was, she’d have to see that look of disappointment on his face. The look that threatened to break her heart every time she saw it. But what choice did she have? It was either Jon’s where she would find humiliation and pity, or Jorah’ where she would find immense guilt.

"Dany!"

Opening her eyes, Dany jerked her head in time to see Jon break into a run towards her. For a millisecond, she contemplated making a run for it. But why bother? She still wasn’t positive she wouldn’t end up going back to his place, and if she did decide to go to Jorah’, Jon couldn’t stop her.

Out of breath, he knelt in front of her and gently grabbed her arms, as though afraid she would take off. "Thank God, you’re okay, I was so worried."

"Despite popular belief and any impressions you may have gotten over the past few days, I can take care of myself," she replied quietly.

Jon looked down for a second before meeting her eyes once again. "I know that. I’m sorry, I just care about you. Sometimes logical stuff doesn’t factor into my feelings."

Dany smiled for a second before feeling anger flare up inside her. "How dare you fight my battles for me! I could have handled Daario! I would have, had you not gone macho man on him!"

"I know that," he said, "He just made me so mad. Daario is a complete asshole and when I heard the crap he was saying to you, all I felt was an impulse to attack."

"How did you know about him anyway?" Dany asked, the anger slipping away almost completely. It hadn’t really been anger in the first place. It was more embarrassment and the slightest hint of annoyance.

Jon moved around to sit next to her on the bench before answering, "Daario likes to talk."

"Figures," she said, "Look, it’s not how it seemed. When I was… with… Daario… I had just gotten out of a relationship with someone I loved. I had been with him since I was sixteen. He was my first love. I admit that I was rather naïve because my only experience had been with someone who loved me and, for the most part, treated me well. Take that… lack of knowledge about the ways of some men.. and add to it the fact that I was lonely and out of place being a freshman, and I made an idiot out of myself. I’m not some simpering, pitiful girl."

"Dany, there are a lot of words I would use to describe you, but simpering and pitiful you are not. Daario does this to a lot of girls, smart girls who are respectable and not twits or anything like that. He knows how to play you to get what he wants. Don’t be ashamed."

"Trust me when I say I wish I could forget it ever happened."

"Yeah, I guess that’s impossible now… since you’re carrying the result of it," Jon replied mournfully.

Dany bit her bottom lip, bracing herself for whatever reaction Jon might have to what she was about to say. "Actually, Daario is not the father of my baby."

"He’s not?" Jon asked, turning his head sharply to her. "But… who, then? I mean, I know we didn’t really hang out until November, but I don’t recall seeing or hearing about you with anyone else."

"Well, remember the ‘first love’ I just mentioned? He and I… had a… temporary thing… Thanksgiving weekend."

"Oh."

Dany chuckled, "I guess I burst a few of your bubbles about me, huh?"

Jon pretended to think it over for a moment before shaking his head. "Nah, you’re still caring, sweet, smart and beautiful."

Dany flushed at the beautiful comment, "You’re a strange guy, Jon. Most men would have run far, far away from me by now."

"I can’t help it… I’m drawn to you like a moth to a flame," Jon responded, then frowned. "I just called myself an insect. An *ugly* insect. Forget I said that."

Dany laughed softly and Jon allowed himself to enjoy the moment. He just wished they would have more of them, but the odds were not in their favor. However, he was feeling himself get caught up in the spirit of the evening and decided to be a little out of character. He wanted to have fun.

"I have something to ask you, but I don’t want you to freak out," he told her.

"Okay…" Dany replied, unsure of where he was going.

"Will you marry me?" he asked, then smiled as she sighed and opened her mouth to retort. "I’ve decided to ask you every day until you say yes."

Dany smiled and touched her hand to the side of his face. "You’re truly a remarkable man, Jon."

"Is that a yes?"

"No, my answer is still no," she assured him, "Besides, you still don’t know the whole story. You don’t know about the father… and if you did, you would surely change your mind."

"Why don’t you give me a chance? Tell me about him… unless it’s too hard to talk about."

"If I told you… you’d probably never speak to me again."

"It could never happen. Will you tell me?"

"It could happen. He’s much older than me, had trouble with the police"

"Okay, I am still saying if it’s painful this conversation can wait, but the whole ‘older’ thing is really a cliffhanger, so I really want you to tell me," Jon replied, "Oh no, the father’s not an old, baldie grandfather, is it? Because the chances are your baby would be like Benjamin Button and you know I find no fault in your looks, but with all the wrinkles… it’s just creepy."

Dany began to laugh and put a hand up, "Jon, stop."

"Oh… sorry.", laughing.

"The father isn’t that old" she explained. "He’s 35," she replied. "You see… it’s a long story. The gist of it is Drogo- that’s the guy’s name- had trouble with the law, in and out of jail, for most of his life… but, for the last years he’s been out of trouble. When I was sixteen, living in Harrenhal, he moved there as well and we run into each other at a track field, he’s really into sports and martial arts and I fell in love with him before I knew about his past, not that it truly mattered but made things harder…. And by that time it was too late for me. I was lost. We tried to stay away when my uncle found out about us and didn’t approve for all the reasons concerning the police problems and him being much older, but it was too hard. We thought that our love was enough to make it work."

"But it didn’t," Jon concluded.

Dany shook her head and continued, "On my seventeenth birthday, we had a fall out over my uncle’s disapproval and we spent a year being on-again, off-again, but, in the end, it was just too much for him, my uncle’s constant berating and our age gap. He left me because he wanted me to have a normal teenage life specially that I was about to start College here and he knew I wouldn’t do that with him around. So now he’s in King’s Landing"

"God, Dany… I’m so sorry," Jon said, pushing aside his feelings of disapproval over her being with someone criminal, but what she had gone through had to have been unbearable. He had a new respect for her.

"The day after Thanksgiving I went to a party in King’s Landing and we kind of ran into each other, had too much of a spiked punch that had some crazy new drug on it and we still had feelings for each other so… we made a baby, obviously. I forgot about it all, even though I was conscious at the party because I remember most of it… but I started having dreams about it… only I didn’t know… but then when I was found out I was pregnant I just *knew* that they weren’t just dreams, so I went and saw Drogo and made him tell me. He did… and I told him about the baby. I thought that because I love him and he loves me we could figure something out. After all, a baby changes everything. But instead he said that he just got back on his feet, opened a fitness center, has a lot of debts and things to get over and can’t be a father… and he wanted me to have an abortion."

“I see”, Jon interrupted, "Regardless of what happened, a baby it’s special… it’s like you were *meant* to."

"That’s what I told Drogo, but… it didn’t matter to him. He doesn’t want me to keep the baby. But he didn’t pressure me. He just says he can’t be there. He did offer to give me all the money I need, but I refused. It probably makes you want to smack me, right? I know my uncle did. I know I am being irrational, especially considering my financial status… but I don’t want him to be able to not feel guilty for abandoning us because he slips me money."

"Dany, I was raised to have pride and be noble. Sometimes pride does get in the way, and perhaps that is the situation you are in… but I understand it. I can’t say if I were in your situation, I wouldn’t have done the same thing."

Dany smiled sadly at him and said, "You never cease to amaze me."

"Oh! It’s twelve-o-three!" he gasped. "We missed the countdown!"

"I’m sorry, Jon! I ruined the whole… ringing in the new year thing for you."

"It’s fine, Dany," he assured her. "Believe me when I say that there is no place I would have preferred to be, no person I would have wanted to spend it with more than you."

"I’m a very messed up person," she replied.

"I adore the person you are," he grinned. "It’s Saturday now."

"Yeah?" she asked, unsure of where he was going.

"It’s another day… time to ask… will you marry me?"

Dany quirked an eyebrow and was silent for a moment. "Okay."

Caught off guard, Jon looked at her more closely. "Okay?"

"Yes," she nodded, "I will marry you."

"Don’t get me wrong, I’m happy to hear this… but why did you change your mind all of a sudden?"

Dany shrugged and smiled half-heartedly at him. "We just made it to a new year."

“Now tell me why all of a sudden you’re agreeing to marry me."

"You’re right; marrying you is the best thing I could do for myself. Even more important, it’s the best thing I can do for my baby. I have to start thinking in regards to that. It’s just that this is so complicated. I have to consider you and the fact that this doesn’t help you in any way. It actually hurts you because it’s making you lie and move out of your home… even if we aren’t married in every sense of the word, you won’t have the freedom you do now," she sighed.

"Yes, but I am an adult. You aren’t deciding for me… I decided for myself."

"I know that, but it doesn’t make me feel any less guilty about it," she told him, "Still… I’m willing to deal with that guilt if you are truly willing to do this."

"I am," he nodded, "So… you didn’t really believe this was the best thing before?"

"No, I did… it’s just that I felt that everything else that wasn’t so great that came along with it made it not worth it," she replied. "I’m going to be divorced at twenty. When I dreamed about getting married, it was a lifetime thing. You know, the big beautiful summer wedding, with me all in white, feeling like the most gorgeous woman on the planet. My uncle would give me away and I would be so happy… so excited about spending the rest of my life with the man I loved."

"You can still have that."

Dany smiled and replied, "Jon I’ll never have that. But especially now. I mean, I’m going to try dating with a kid. My Mr. Perfect is going to have to not only love me, but my son or daughter."

Jon wanted to grab her and tell her that he could be that guy. He wanted to shout that she made him feel things that no other girl had. He loved children and he wanted to be a father someday. Sure, this wasn’t the way he’d imagined starting a family, but they could make it work.

But that would be bad. Dany could barely handle a marriage of convenience… if he told her he wanted to have a real marriage… she’d freak. "You’re an amazing person, Dany. I’m certain that you will be able to find a guy like that."

"I’m not," she sighed. "Look at my track record. Drogo- really great love thing going, but major angst as well. I mean, the fates were just laughing their asses off at us during that relationship. Daario- total loser. And you- everything was going great until I found out I’m pregnant with Drogo’s baby, got kicked out of my house, and now you’re stuck marrying me."

"They say the third time’s a charm," he said optimistically.

Dany chuckled, "That’s true. I guess we’ll never know what might have been between us."

"If there is one thing you have taught me, Dany, it’s never say never. Ever since I met you… the most unexpected things keep happening."

"I have a way of doing that. You can be doing great, enjoying life… and then you meet me and life as you knew it is long gone."

"Can we go home now? I’m cold," Jon grinned.

Dany nodded and stood up, "Sounds fine with me. Although I must say, I’m not in much of a partying mood."

"That’s fine," he replied, standing up as well. "We can hang out in my room until things quiet down enough for us to sleep. I’m sure we have a long day tomorrow… cleaning up… and making wedding plans."

"Yeah," Dany said absently as they walked back towards Castle Black. She was actually going to plan her *wedding* the next day. All of a sudden, she felt exhausted. Her life had changed so drastically in the past few days… she dreaded when the realization of what had happened would really hit her.

Jon couldn’t believe he was going to have to think about his wedding the next day either. Even more surprising, though, was the fact that he was almost excited about it. As much as he liked his life as it was… he was looking forward to a new one with Dany.

Tomorrow was bound to be interesting.


	13. Of insanities

"That’s it!" Edd exclaimed, "You have gone off the deep end!"

"Shut up, I have not," Jon replied as they tossed the trash bags in the dumpster. It had taken hours of every occupant in the house working hard, but they’d gotten it all cleaned up.

"What is it about Dany? I mean, you’re a perfectly normal guy until you’re around her and then you lose your mind," Edd ranted. "I can’t believe you are marrying her."

"Well I am, so I suggest you grasp the idea and fast. We’re going to start getting things together today so that we can get this done as soon as possible. I managed to get Colonel Davos to agree to meet with me this afternoon. I hope they can set Dany up with health insurance really fast. You wouldn’t believe all the vitamins and stuff she has to take."

"This is insane," Edd sighed, shaking his head as they walked back into the house. "Why am I the only one who sees it?"

"Because you have some strange distrust of women. Are you sure you didn’t fall in love with your kindergarten teacher?" Jon joked. Still, he did wonder why Edd seemed to always think women weren’t to be trusted. He swore up and down that he didn’t have some story of having his heart broken, but Jon didn’t see how he got to be this way. Then again, Edd was always the cynical one.

"I’m just giving you fair warning: you will learn to regret this and I *will* remind you that I told you so."

"I’m shocked," Jon replied sarcastically.  
"Give him a break, Edd," Pyp said as he walked by. "Ignore him, Jon. Edd is just scared he’s gonna lose his little buddy."

Jon laughed as Edd glared at Pyp. As the two of them started bickering, Jon headed through the house in search of Dany. He found her sitting at the kitchen table talking to Samwell. Upon his entrance, they both looked over at him.

"Hey Jon, can you believe Dany’s uncle owns an art gallery slash antique shop and she’s raised between old books and paintings?" Samwell asked, clearly impressed. 

Dany shrugged and smiled, "It’s that amazing karma I have."

"Hey, you keep life interesting," Jon replied as he sat down beside her.

"So I’ve been told," Dany said. "When do you have to go to that meeting thing?"

"At two," Jon answered, "I’m going to want to shower and I have to get in uniform for it, though, so I will probably want to get ready right after lunch."

"Okay, that’s fine," Dany nodded, "Actually, I was wondering if I could use your computer. There are some things I’d like to look up about babies and stuff and cell phone screens are too small."

"That’s a great idea!" Jon replied enthusiastically, "After my meeting, maybe we can talk and start making more definite plans, since we know exactly what we’ll need to do."

"Don’t forget that we’re taking you two out to dinner," Sam reminded Dany.

Confused, Jon asked "What?"

Sam smiled at his friend and explained, "The guys want to take your two out to celebrate your engagement so we’re all going out to dinner tonight. Tormund made reservations and everything."

"You’ve got to be kidding," sighed Jon.

Samwell shrugged, "At least we’ve almost talked him out of the bachelor party. Although, it would be fun to see how uncomfortable you would be getting a lapdance." He chuckled as he looked at Dany and added, "Jon gets *so* embarrassed at strip clubs. He does not like them!"

Dany quirked an eyebrow and smirked at Jon as he blushed furiously. He really was adorable; definitely a guy she would want to be in a relationship with… a real one. If only…

*

"What am I supposed to do?" Pyp hissed.  
"Keep them busy," Tormund replied, "I don’t care what you do, just make sure they don’t go upstairs."

Pyp sighed, trying to figure out just how he was going to do that. "Do you have *any* ideas?"

Tormund simply shrugged and said, "You’ll think of something."

Reluctantly, he turned and pushed open the kitchen door, instantly giving Dany and Jon his biggest grin. "Hey you two!"

Jon found it strange to see his friend so… enthusiastic, but ignored it and replied, "Hi again, Pyp."

"Hi," Dany smiled.

"So, you two looking forward to dinner tonight?" Pyp asked as he pulled up a chair. Perhaps this wasn’t his best idea…. they seemed to have been in deep discussion before he walked in. He could have just waited outside the kitchen and if either of them had emerged before the coast was clear he could have stopped them. Oh well, it was too late now.

"Uh, yeah," Dany replied, looking at him strangely. "I mean… I enjoy food."

"Have you ever been to a Meereenese restaurant?" he inquired, hoping Jon wouldn’t take notice of how strange he was acting and realize he was doing it to keep them away from Jon’s bedroom.

"No, I don’t think so," Dany replied. "Where is it?"

"It’s just outside Dragonstone," he replied, "It’s a half hour drive, but it’s the best Meereenese food in the world, so it’s worth it. All of us really love it, right Jon?"

Jon nodded and stood up, "I better go start getting ready for my meeting."

"No!"

Both Dany and Jon looked at Pyp as though he had grown another head.

Pyp tried to calm himself and smiled. "I mean, you have plenty of time, Jon, can’t you sit and talk to us for… oh…" glancing at his watch, he saw that the guys had been in Jon’s room for two and a half minutes, "seven and a half minutes or so."

"Is everything okay, Pyp?" Jon asked.

"Fine," he assured them, "I just don’t really know Dany and she’s going to be marrying one of my friends soon!"

"Well, I’m sure Dany would like to talk to you… and can do it while I get ready."  
"Maybe Dany feels uncomfortable talking to me alone since she doesn’t really know me," Pyp countered.

Dany opened her mouth to protest when Jon laughed, "Are you serious? Dany is fine with it, aren’t you Dany?"

Pyp ignored Dany nodding and said, "Jon, you’ll be moving out soon. We should hang while we can. Will… six minutes kill you?"

Sighing, Jon sat down. "Okay…"

"Um… hey, remember that time we were playing football and you hit Tormund? Tell Dany about it!"

*  
"Jesus," Tormund whistled as he held up Dany’s jeans, "How the hell is someone this tiny going to be able to pop out a kid without splitting in half?"

"Yeah, especially since it’s Jon’s and the amount of hair in his head…," Grenn commented, still digging around for a suitable top.

Tormund stopped admiring a pair of her lacy black panties and asked, "How do you think they even had sex? I wouldn’t call my experience limited, but I have never had sex with anyone this small. Maybe she’s always on top." He smiled at the image of that until Grenn smacked him on the back of the head. "Let’s get out of here, man. Pyp can’t keep them out of here too long."

*

Tormund attempted to appear casual as he strode into the kitchen, slightly nodding at Pyp, who breathed a sigh of relief. They were done; his job was over. Of course, he had already made a total ass out of himself.

Not noticing, Jon sighed and said, "Pyp, look, we can hang out tonight, okay? I really need to get ready."

"Okay," he said calmly, smiling.

Dany’s eyebrow quirked, but she didn’t comment on the sudden change in Pyp.

Shaking his head, Jon shared an amused look with Dany before leaving her in the kitchen with the other two guys so he could hit the showers.

"So Dany," Tormund began, taking the chair formerly occupied by Jon, "What’s your style?"

"My style?"

"Yeah, you know… like for dresses. What kind of… cut… do you like?"

"He means, like, do you like empire waist, a-line, capped sleeves, long sleeves, do you like to show some leg or do you prefer long dresses?" Grenn told her, than added, "I’m not gay, I just have three sisters and a seamstress mother."

"Oh," Dany replied, trying to figure out what the hell was wrong with these guys. Something very very strange was going on in this house.

*

"Wow!" Dany exclaimed as Jon entered the living room in his service dress. "I’m getting ‘American Sniper’ flashbacks!"

Jon blushed and replied, "He’s in the *Navy*. I’m in special Night’s Watch."

"Oops, my bad!"

"I’m actually surprised that you knew anything about ‘American Sniper’. You don’t seem like you’re into movies," Dany commented as she turned her body so she was sitting sideways on the couch and facing him.

Jon shrugged and considered sitting down next to her, but decided it was worth it to stand and keep his uniform nice and crisp. "My younger sister, Sansa, would watch it on stream for days because of Bradley Cooper. I’d watched over her and all the other siblings, Arya, Bran and Rickon, in the afternoons when my aunt would go shopping and stuff…. I liked the movie, but I had to endure that film a good dozen times."

"That explains it," she laughed, then added, "That’s a big family! I have always wanted to have on like that too. Alas. You look very nice and quite… wonderful in this one."

Jon blushed again, "Thank you."

Dany took a deep breath, "This is really happening, huh? I mean, you’re all dressed in your fancy clothes to go tell some important guy that you got a girl pregnant and want to marry her. You’re going to *lie*, Jon! This could destroy your whole career. I think this is even illegal. We could end up in jail."

"Calm down, Dany," Jon said, "Everything will be fine. They’ll never know the truth. Besides, if they manage to someday find out I am not the father… we lie. Look at all those women on talk shows who lie to a guy and tell him he’s the father of their baby when it’s actually some other guy."

Dany sighed, "I always wanted to smack those women."

"I know… and I would hate pretending that was the truth… but that is our worst case scenario," he assured her. "Now, you aren’t backing out on me, are you?"  
Dany shook her head and stood up, giving him a weak smile. "Thank you, Jon."

"Hey… you know I don’t mind," he replied, stroking her cheek when she stood in front of him.  
Standing on her tip-toes, she gently kissed him on the cheek. "You’re positively the most amazing guy I have ever met."

Jon was pleasantly surprised by the kiss, even if it was as chaste as possible. Giving her a confident grin, he took a few steps back. "I’d better be on my way. Colonel Davos will appreciate me being early. Hey, have you noticed that we appear to be the only people here?"

Dany nodded and answered, "Yeah, well, I know some of the guys had to go… do their duty thing… and it seems like everyone else just disappeared a little bit after you went upstairs. Nobody said anything to me, so I have no clue where they went."

"That’s odd," Jon commented, then shrugged. Something was up, but it didn’t seem overly evil.


	14. Of shopping

"I can’t believe I let you guys drag me here," Edd complained, "I am not at all involved in this, just so you know. All I am going to do is stand here and look on with disapproval."

"Whatever, man," Tormund replied as he and a group of other guys from Castle Black invaded the clothing store in the mall. They really had no clue what they were doing, but the store had some nice looking dresses in the window, and that’s what they needed.

An overwhelmed salesgirl approached Tormund, since he appeared to be the leader, and said "Welcome, can I help you?"

"Yes!" he replied enthusiastically, holding up Dany’s jeans and blouse. "I need a dress for a girl who wears these sizes. A wedding dress… so we need white or some other light color."

"Well, We don’t have wedding dresses," the girl answered.

"Yeah, but you have dresses, right?" Grenn piped in, disappointment on his face. They couldn’t fail now, after all they had gone through. "It’s not a big wedding, so she won’t want a really fancy dress."

"Okay, but our dresses are too casual for even a small wedding. Besides, since it’s the middle of winter, we don’t have any light colors."

"But we have to surprise her with a wedding dress!" Sam explained, gesturing towards the clothes in Tormund’s hands, "We stole her clothes to get the right size and everything!"

"Wow, that’s very… cool… I guess," she replied, then felt a pang of sympathy for them. After all, they seemed to be pretty sweet, trying to buy a wedding dress for a girl. Although, she had to wonder why the in the hell a girl would need a bunch of guys to buy her a wedding dress, but still… "Have you guys checked out Essos?"

"Do they have wedding dresses?" Tormund asked.

She shrugged and replied, "They have a lot of dresses. Nice dresses… maybe they’ll have what you need."

*  
"Colonel Davos," Jon greeted, saluting the older man as he entered the office.

The Colonel saluted as well before taking his seat behind the desk, gesturing for Jon to sit in the chair on the other side, "Special Agent Snow, how are you doing this afternoon?"

"I’m very well, Sir. And you?" Jon replied, trying to appear as calm as possible while sitting up straight and being respectful. No matter how much experience he had at it, meeting with his superior officers always made him nervous as hell.

"I’m doing fine," the Colonel said, "Now, let’s get to the matter at hand. I was quite surprised to hear from you so early on New Years Day, so when you told me you really needed to meet with me as soon as possible, I had a feeling it was something very important."

"Yes, it is," Jon told him, taking a deep breath. "There’s a girl… we’ve been seeing each other for a while. Last night we decided to get married. We want to do it right away because, well… she’s pregnant."

"I see… that’s quite a situation. On one hand I am happy to hear you are taking responsibility. Too many times men stop being men when things get tough. On the other… this is a story as old as time. Are you *sure* you want to marry this girl? I know that right now it seems like the best idea, but if you take an unplanned pregnancy for two young people and add to it a marriage between two people who possibly shouldn’t spend their lives together… it’s just making the situation worse."

"We have both thought about it long and hard and we’ve decided this is what we want. To be perfectly honest, I have always thought she could be the one, I just hadn’t planned on making her the one so soon," Jon assured the older man.

"Okay, well that’s good to hear," Colonel Davos replied.

Jon nodded and continued, "The reason I am coming to see you about it right away is that this affects my living situation greatly. You can’t have a wife and child in Castle Black."

"And you heard that we make accommodations for these circumstances," the man concluded.

"Yes Sir," Jon admitted, "One of my fellow officers told me about it when we were talking about what I was going to do."  
"He’s right; we can get you two into an apartment of your own, you will get a raise due to the cost of living with a wife and child and we’ll get her some health insurance."

Jon leaned forward in his chair and asked, "Another thing, Sir, is that I thought I saw something a while back about a program where the military will fund the education of spouse’s. Some sort of scholarship."

The Colonel nodded and asked, "Your… fiancée is a student at the university?"

"Yes, well she was. If she can get this scholarship she will be still… it’s just that her uncle was paying for the tuition and he didn't take the news of her… condition too well. She’s just a freshman… only completed her first semester. She’s doing so well… I would hate for her to miss out on an education, but with the baby, I don’t know if we could afford it."

"I think we could take care of that," the older man said, "Now, why don’t we get started on the paperwork?"

*  
"I hurt," said Grenn.

"I hurt more," Pyp countered.

Tormund shook his head, "You couldn’t possibly hurt more than me."

"Neither of you would be hurting if you’d just listened to me," Edd noted.

"Shut up, Edd!" all of the guys yelled at once. None of them were in the mood for any more of his unsolicited comments about their buying Dany her wedding dress. They had spent the past three hours going to eight stores and finding only dark colored dresses. Finally they had found a new small shop that specialized in formalwear. The few wedding dresses they had were far too fancy for what Dany would need in a quickie wedding, but the salesgirl showed them a prom dress that was very simple and came in white. Satisfied that it would work, they bought it before walking back out in the mall and collapsing on the benches that surrounded the fountain.

"You know what I just realized?" Sam asked no one in particular, "We didn’t get her shoes. Do you think she has shoes?"

Pyp frowned, "I can’t believe we didn’t think of that."

"Well, when we stole her clothes I did notice her shoes. She has a ton," Grenn told them.

"Yeah, but all girls have a ton of shoes, and they still always seem to need a new pair for every occasion," Pyp sighed.

"Well, she’ll deal," Tormund said, "Dany will be happy we got her the dress…. Right Sam?"

All heads turned to Samwell since he seemed to know her better than the rest of them. Besides, since he was quiet, they all pegged him for the sensitive guy. Samwell nodded and assured them, "Dany is going to be thrilled with the dress. We’ll give it to her tonight and if she really needs shoes, we can take her to get some tomorrow morning."

Tormund sat up straighter as he was struck with an idea, "Hey guys, should we go to Victoria’s Secret and buy her something for the wedding night? I know we’re all tired, but the mere thought of it gives me the energy to go on."

Once again, all heads turned to Samwell, who replied, "No, I think it would be entirely inappropriate for a bunch of guys to buy their friend’s fiancée lingerie."

"He’s right," Grenn agreed, standing up. "Besides, it’s almost four. We need to get home so we can all get ready to go out for dinner. Then we can give them their presents!"

Enthused, the guys dragged their tired bodies off the benches and headed to the parking lot. It was going to be a hell of a night!

*

"Okay, so Monday morning, we’re going to have to call and see what we have to do to get the license. There’s no waiting period or blood tests… so then it’s just a matter of getting married," Jon explained.

Dany nodded, trying not to look scared. After all, they were discussing their *wedding*. "Yeah, and that’s just going to be as cheap and fast as possible… where are we going to do it, anyway?"

"Well, churches are ruled out immediately. They require all kinds of other things, like classes. Besides, you have to book months in advance. I was thinking justice of the peace. You know, a courthouse wedding," Jon replied, "We need to get married as soon as possible, the paperwork is already going through, but nothing ‘official’ can happen until we have a marriage certificate."

"All right… so I guess we should just make a list of things to do and start calling around Monday morning," Dany said.

"Hey you two!" Tormund greeted enthusiastically as he entered the kitchen and found Dany and Jon sitting at the kitchen table. Loudly, he added "How nice it is to see *both* Dany and Jon in the *kitchen*!"

Dany and Jon exchanged confused looks as they heard the thud of feet going up the stairs. Again, they were reminded that something very odd was going on. 

"Where did you guys go?" Dany asked.

Waylon tried to look casual as he opened the refrigerator door and pulled out a can of coke. "We just had a few errands to run and stuff. Mostly we hung out."  
"Oh," Dany replied, frowning. They certainly were acting like something was going on. Then again, she didn’t know them that well.

Jon was positive that Tormund was lying, but he wasn’t going to push it. He was far more concerned with getting everything taken care of so that they could be married and Dany could have health insurance as soon as possible. "I wonder how long it takes to go to a judge and get married…"

"Weeks!" Tormund exclaimed before rushing over to the table. "I knew a guy who wanted to get married and the waiting list is weeks!"

Dany sighed sadly and looked at Jon, "That means it’ll be weeks before we can even get all the paperwork in to get an apartment. We’ll be here for at least a month."

"Don’t worry, we’ll think of something," Jon assured her, "Besides, if we spend the next month here, it’ll be okay. I told you, the guys don’t mind you being here, right Tormund?"

Tormund nodded and gave her a bright smile, trying to cover the guilt he felt. In reality, he had no idea if there was a two day or two *month* waiting list to get married. Even though it had made Dany sad, it was for her own good. She and Jon would be thanking him for not letting them mess everything up by running off to a lame courthouse later.

*

"Hey Sam, care to tell me what’s going on?"

Samwell gave Jon his most innocent look as the rest of their party left them in the foyer of the restaurant while following a hostess who led them to their table. "What do you mean, Jon?"

"You know exactly what I mean! All of you are acting very, very weird. Something’s up. Now what is it?"

"All I can say is we’re feeling very festive about your engagement to Dany. The guys really like her so they are happy for you," Samwell replied, "Is that what you mean?"

"No, it’s not!" Jon sighed, "I just hope that you are good enough of a friend that whatever they are up to isn’t bad even if they don’t mean it to be. Dany isn’t marrying me for anything remotely romantic and I worry that if they make it *seem* romantic it’ll upset her."

"Don’t worry; I am your friend and I don’t want to upset Dany," Samwell assured him before hurrying towards the table. He should have known better than to give Jon the chance to try and grill him. 

Reluctantly, Jon followed, hoping Sam was right. He knew that Dany was far from a weak girl, but she’d been through a lot, and he couldn’t help but feel that Drogo’s decision not to be a part of her and the baby’s life had left her really vulnerable. The guys might have the best of intentions, but Dany could end up hurt. Besides, they thought that the two of them were going to be a normal husband and wife, so any little surprises they had in story could be really embarrassing for the both of them.

When he reached the table, Jon took the seat that had been saved for him next to Dany and tried to look casual and happy. After all, everyone else thought that he was engaged to the mother of his unborn child. In reality, he was scared. Not just scared because he was about to be a *married* man, but scared about what marrying Dany would lead to. He just wasn’t sure he could live in the same apartment with her for a year, watch her stomach grow as she carried her baby, be there when she gave birth, all without feeling something dangerously deep for her. As it was, he adored her so much that the thought of never seeing her again made his heart ache. How was he going to be able to let go after all that?

"So, are you having any weird cravings? I’d like to know, because if you’re going to order something really strange, I want to switch seats so I don’t have to see it," Tormund teased Dany.

Dany smiled and shook her head, "Nothing bizarre yet. No pickles and ice cream or anything else. I’m not even hungrier than I was before, so you’re safe."

"I heard one time that some pregnant women crave *dirt*," Tormund commented as he looked through the menu.

Dany wrinkled her nose, "No, dirt is still… dirt, to me, not food."

"Maybe only women from Wildling lands or something crave dirt," Pyp said, then turned to Grenn, "What do I usually get here?"

He shrugged, "How the hell should I know? Do I look like your mother?"

Jon dipped his head down so he could whisper in Dany’s ear, "Do *not* find them cute or in any way endearing. They’re up to something, I can tell. The little disappearance today, and the extremely bizarre way they’ve been acting ... definitely. Don’t trust them."

Dany smiled up at him and shook her head. "They’re sweeties, don’t be so suspicious."

Jon opened his mouth to swear to her that these were not regular guys she was dealing with, but men trained by the best on how to go undercover, military men who were not to be taken lightly…. But he was hit in the head with the wrapper Edd blew off his straw. Watching his friend laugh hysterically at the look on his face, Jon decided it was probably not the best time to tell her that and expect her to take him seriously.

*

Dany had to remind herself not to drool as the waiter set the white chocolate raspberry cheesecake in front of her. She’d seen it on the menu when she’d been trying to decide on an entrée. Knowing that she *had* to have it, she’d ordered something light for her meal and politely declined everything the guys had offered her from their own meals.

"Dany’s in love," Tormund teased, "Jon, you should be jealous of that dessert."

Jon chuckled as Dany blushed, "Leave her alone, Man. She’s eating for two now."

"Jon!" Dany admonished; even if it was true, she’d made it clear to him earlier that day that she didn’t need to be handled like a fragile flower. She especially didn’t want little comments made constantly about her being pregnant.

"Hey, don’t worry," Pyp said, gesturing to the chocolate mousse in front of him, "I have a sweet tooth too."

"I think it’s time we give Dany her present," Tormund announced.

As Dany looked stunned, Jon leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms over his chest. Finally, he was going to find out what the guys were up to.

"You guys got me a present? What did you get me a present for?" Dany asked, looking around. "You didn’t have to…"

"Stop, you’re ruining the moment," Tormund told her. "We’ve worked really hard for this so let us enjoy our excitement, okay?"

Dany nodded and smiled at them as she accepted the wrapped box from him. Being a girl, she was careful not to rip the paper and drove all the boys crazy with anticipation for her to see what they got her. Finally, the paper was off and she was opening the box. Pulling out the dress, Dany gasped in amazement.

"Do you like it?" Sam asked anxiously.

"It should fit you- we stole… er… borrowed some of your clothes to match it up," Pyp told her. "But we didn’t look at your underwear or anything, "I swear!"

Jon narrowed his eyes at him while Tormund smacked him in the arm, but Dany was too busy trying not to cry to notice.

"Oh my God, this is a wedding dress, isn’t it?" she asked, overwhelmed by how sweet they were.

Tormund nodded and slapped the table "We just figured you wouldn’t want a… big wedding dress. The girl at the store said you would probably want this style. Do you not like it? We can take it back!"

Dany shook her head and smiled at him, "I can’t believe you guys did this. It’s just… amazing!"

"Is she happy or sad?" Grenn asked Jon. 

"She’s happy," he replied, not taking his eyes off her. Even if this wasn’t a real wedding, Dany honestly was touched by the gesture, and that pleased him.  
"Thank you all so much," she said, giving everyone at the table a grateful smile. "I can’t believe how kind you are. This is so above and beyond anything I could have ever imagined you doing."

"Good, we are very glad you like it," Tormund replied, pleased. "Now, for the rest of your gift. This part is for both of you."

"You got us something else?" Jon asked, stunned. He’d always known that the guys he lived with were true friends, but he’d never imagined them going all out for him like this. Then again, they really liked Dany…

"Hey, you only get married once!" Samwell piped in, grinning shamelessly at the two of them since he knew neither had any intentions of this being their only marriage… or at least a marriage that would last for the rest of their lives.

"First of all, you two have reservations at the Hightower Palace in Oldtown for Monday. We also made reservations for you at Starry Sept Monday evening at seven," Tormund informed them. "We’ve done our research and you guys can drive to Oldtown Monday morning… it’ll take about six hours. We looked into plane tickets, but it was impossible on this short of notice. Anyway, we figure you will get there in the early afternoon. That’ll give you plenty of time to check in at the hotel and get your marriage license. There’s no blood test or waiting period in Oldtown, of course, so you guys can go do that in half an hour or so. You two can get married that night and we made the reservations through to Wednesday so you guys can be alone and have a little honeymoon. And you send us a copy of your marriage certificate Monday night and we can get that in to Colonel Davos so they can get all the paperwork in. This way you get your quickie wedding and some time alone."

"Yeah, and everyone says Oldtown is a blast," Pyp added as they all waited for Dany and Jon’s reactions.

"Wow, it’s really cool of you guys to do all this for us… but, I don’t know… I mean The Hightower’s Palace is really nice. Are you sure we can afford it?"

"Well, we’re paying for it, of course!" Tormund exclaimed, "That’s our gift to you, not just the arrangements."

"But it’s too much!" Dany argued.

"It’s nothing," Tormund assured her, "For one thing, there is a bunch of us sharing the cost. Plus, Sam’s cousin works at Caesar’s. He hooked us up with a room for a great price, and he’s the one who set up the wedding for you two," he explained.

Jon looked down at Dany and sighed. As great as it sounded, it was wrong. He and Dany weren’t a real couple. They couldn’t do this- the guys thought they were setting up a fun wedding for their friends who were in love. "This is so great of you guys, but we couldn’t…"

Dany looked up at him and shrugged, "Why not, Jon? We’ll get our marriage certificate a lot faster this way… and it sounds fun. It’d be nice to go experience Oldtown while I can still see my feet."

Jon could tell that she really meant it and saw her point. Sure, they were only marrying each other to help Dany out, but why couldn’t they have some fun. Besides, the guys had gone to such great lengths…. it would be rude to say no. Looking up, he nodded and smiled, "We’ll do it."


	15. Of coffee houses

Dany looked over at Jon and gave him a grateful smile as he pulled up to the curb in front of the coffee shop. "Thanks for the ride, I really appreciate it."

"No problem," he replied, "Are you sure you won’t need a ride home?"

Dany shook her head, "I’m fine."

"Okay, well call me if you change your mind," he told her as she opened her door and stepped out.

"I will," she promised, then waved at Edd in the backseat, "Bye!"

"Bye," he replied, waving unenthusiastically.

After Dany has shut the door and Jon saw her join Missandei and Grey at one of the tables, he pulled back out onto the street so he could go run his errands. Edd remained silent, just making eye contact with Jon whenever he looked in the rearview mirror.

Jon sighed and shook his head, "I don’t want to hear it, Edd."

"Fine, I won’t remind you that you completely out of your mind and just asking for trouble by letting yourself believe in this little fantasy you created to trick everyone else," Edd replied, looking out the window. "I’m your friend so forgive me if I am not leaping for joy at the news of your impending nuptials. I *knew* it was a bad idea for you to moon all over a freshman and you know what’s going to happen? You’re gonna have a grand old time being married to Daenerys and playing husband and daddy and then a year from now it’s going to be over and you’ll be all depressed. We’ll have to listen to you moon over her even more and then you’ll probably adore the baby too. You are going to want to smack yourself for this colossal mistake for the rest of your life."

"Thanks for not saying anything, Edd," Jon said sarcastically, "I need all the support of my friends right now so any negative comments right now aren’t appreciated."

"Hey, if negative comments are going to possibly make you see reason, I have plenty more where that came from."  
"Keep it to yourself!"

Edd rolled his eyes, but held his tongue. He and Jon had been friends long enough that he knew when not to push it. He just wished there was something he could do to stop him!

*

"Hey, Dany!" Missandei greeted eagerly as the blonde joined her and Grey at the table in the coffee shop. Grey smiled at his friend.

Dany smiled at the both of them, a nervous smile, but a real one nonetheless. She was so glad to have their support. Even if they hadn’t really backed her at first, they did now and that was important. However, she’d asked them to meet her so that she could tell them she was marrying Jon. Dany wasn’t sure how they would take it, but if she waited until after she got back and it was all said and done, they’d take it a lot worse.

"Hi guys, thanks for coming," she replied, taking a seat.

"We love spending time with you,my friend," Missandei said, then asked "You’re not going to have coffee, are you? Because that would be bad for the baby."

"No, I don’t want anything. I actually wanted to tell you guys something," she said, taking a deep breath, "I’m marrying Jon."

Missandei and Grey stared at her with twin looks of shock on their faces. She frowned as she realized that she probably should have worked up to her news just a bit instead of blurting it out.

Finally Grey said, "I think I speak for both of us when I say ‘what’? I mean, Dany, we just found out a week ago that you’re having a baby… then you get kicked out of your uncle’s and start staying with a guy you went on a couple dates with… and now you’re marrying him? This is a really big week, even by your terms."

"I know," she laughed, then stopped herself. They were still adjusting to the news and if she did her ‘laughing instead of crying’ thing, they’d probably have her committed. "It’s not a real marriage, not in the sense that we love each other and want to spend our lives together. It’ll be legal and we’ll live together, but we’re getting a divorce in a year."

"But, why?" Missandei asked, still stunned.

"Jon found out if he marries me and claims this is his baby, the military will help. I can have health insurance, they’ll pay for an apartment for us and they’ll even pay for school for me. This way I won’t have to quit. I can get a degree and get a good job, so I can have money to give my child a decent life."

"Wow… whose idea was this?" Grey asked.  
"Jon’s, believe it or not. He’s actually willing to do this… he doesn’t gain a thing… he’s just helping me out."

"Are you *sure*?" Grey questioned suspiciously, "There’s no catch? You have to admit, this sounds way too good to be true. I know he’s always seemed nice in the past, but you don’t know him all that well. What if he’s got ulterior motives?"

"Like what?" Dany asked incredulously.

"He’s going to be your hero… he could want to get in your pants! I’m a guy, trust me, we will sometimes go to insane lengths for sex.”

"Grey, I am pregnant. That’s like the biggest turn-off in the world to a guy."

"Some guys," he said,

Dany shook her head, "No, it’s not that. Jon’s not like that. I know you guys think I am being naïve, but I have strong instincts about people and Jon is for real. He’s not doing this to hurt me or to help himself… he’s a nice guy and he’s willing to do a huge favor to really make a difference in my life."

"I’ll say," Missandei commented, "For the record; I agree that Jon is a nice guy. I think it’s possible… probable, even, that he’s for real. But if he’s not… I’m busting out my shovel! If he’s messing with you, he’ll regret it."

*

"Edd, just forget what it’s for and tell me what you think of this ring?"

Edd looked at the delicate gold ladies wedding band with a small weirwood-like design etched in it that Jon was holding up. "It’s very nice, I’m sure Dany will love it. Hey, why don’t we just go all out? We can catch a plane to King’s Landing and pick out something for her at Tiffany’s."

Jon ignored the last comment and told the salesman he wanted that ring and handed him the ring that belonged to Dany that he borrowed, copying the idea that the rest of the guys had come up with to use something that was already hers to get the size right.

"I know you don’t like this, but it’s happening regardless," Jon told Edd as they waited to pay for Dany’s wedding ring and the simple gold band Jon had picked out for himself. "Maybe you’re right and maybe, you’re wrong, we won’t know until a year from now. Your sulking isn’t going to make me decide not to go through with this, so will you please just knock it off?"

"I’m sorry, but my best friend is about to ruin his life, so I’m not in the best of moods."

"Why do you think I am *ruining* my life? You act like Dany’s evil or something. Why do you hate her?"

"I don’t," Edd argued, "I know that this wasn’t her idea and I don’t blame her for this, not really. I know it’s all you and your stupidity that caused this… but she’s messing everything up."

Jon frowned, "Messing everything up? What are you talking about?"

"Life… less than a week ago, everything was great. All of us were having a great time… being in college, training, partying, drinking, having only cool responsibilities… and then she comes along. Now you’re moving out. We’ll only see you around the school and on watches. No more hanging out… no matter what you say, I know that you’re not just going to sleep and eat at that apartment and be at Castle Black whenever I look for you. I just know that you’re going to love doting on Dany."

"Are you jealous?" Jon asked, amazed. "You are! You’re like an only child, upset that your parents are bringing home a little brother or sister."

"That’s ridiculous," Edd disagreed, "If this was for real… if she was really having your kid and you were going to marry her for the reasons you’re supposed to… I would accept it. But she’s not and you’re not. What you’re doing… it’s not a Jon thing to do. You’re giving up a lot and putting even more at risk for these lies and I’m freaked out. She’d got power over you and she may not even know it, but she does. And a year from now when you two are supposed to just go your separate ways, she may be able to with ease, but you won’t. I don’t want to have to see what you’re going to be like then."

Jon sighed, "Look, you may be right. I may be asking to *really* hurt myself here… but it’s my choice. I’m an adult and capable of making my own decisions. I know the risks and I am willing to do this. Can you please respect that?"


	16. Of yes

"How’re you doing?" Jon asked his passenger as they headed down Roseroad. They were an hour into their trip and it had been problem free so far, but he still worried.

Dany gave him a reassuring smile, "I’m fine… are you worried that I’m going to freak all of a sudden and throw myself from the car?"

"Actually, I was afraid you might be feeling a little ill… you know, morning sickness. But now that you mention it…."

"No freaking here," she replied, shaking her head firmly, "And also, no nausea. I promise to tell you. I won’t ruin your upholstery."

"Well, I figure we’ll get to Bitterbridge in about an hour. Do you think you’ll want to eat then?"

Dany nodded, "Most likely, and even if I’m not, we have a ton of food that the guys packed us. I won’t starve."  
"Okay… if you’re sure," he said, then tried to think of something else to say. They’d been pretty quiet since they had left the house and the silence was starting to get to him. He wasn’t sure if she was being uncharacteristically quiet due to nerves like he was, or if she was just tired.

"You’ve never been to Oldtown either?" she asked suddenly, relieving Jon of the chore of starting a conversation.

Jon shook his head, "It sounds fun, but it never even occurred to me that since I was living in Dragonstone I should make the trip. I guess we’re always so busy with the Night's Watch and school that we never have a few days just to take off. Plus, I usually spend all vacation time back in Winterfell. The only reason I came back so soon this time is for the Night's Watch… I had no idea how slow things get, though." Jon smiled, "Everyone loves a break every so often."

"Are you going to get in trouble? You didn’t get to give them a lot of notice. Things have been slow, but there is always the chance something big will pop up."

"It’s cool," he replied, "I informed my superiors and under the circumstances, they agreed. Besides, we have a house full of patrolers and rangers who don’t have to worry about school or anything else for weeks. They can deal without me for three days."

"Good… I know you told me not to, but I really feel guilty that you’re doing this for me, and I would hate myself if you even got in trouble for it."

"I won’t… and I want you to stop it. Look at it this way, you’re my friend and I care about you. If you’re suffering, it’ll make me sad. By helping you not only do I get to feel good, I also get to make your situation not so bad and see you happier… with makes me feel even better. In a way, this is totally selfish of me."

Jon smiled at Dany as she rolled her eyes. Little did she know that he truly was being selfish. He wasn’t just doing this to help her… he was partially doing this because a part of him liked the idea of being her husband. For her, this was just a marriage of convenience. She was desperately in need and this was her lifejacket. It sort of made him taking advantage of her… but he insisted to himself that since he *was* helping, and his ‘taking advantage’ was simply mental and he wasn’t going to expect her to be his wife in all senses of the word… there was no harm done.

*

"You okay?" Jon asked as Dany scooted in to the booth across the table from him. 

They’d stopped at an International House of Pancakes in Bitterbridge not a moment too soon. As soon as they’d gotten out of the truck, Dany had been hit with a wave of nausea and had made a run for the bathroom inside. Jon was starting to get used to that particular pregnancy symptom, so he took it all in stride, going inside the restaurant and getting a table. Hopefully Dany would want to eat afterwards, or at least have a drink while her stomach settled. If she could at least stand the sight of food, they could stay… since he was ravenous.

"Much better," she nodded, "It goes as quickly as it comes on. I’m already hungry."  
"Good," he replied, handing her a menu.

Dany took it, but didn’t look at, instead she stared out the window and sighed. Jon noticed and deduced that she had something else on her mind.

"What is it?"

Dany turned her head and looked at him in surprise. Realizing he’d seen that she was thinking, she smiled shyly and said, "I just realized… today’s my wedding day. We’re going to be married."

"Yeah, that *is* pretty… wow," Jon replied, fathoming the significance of what she’d said.

"But I’m not saying this is something dreadful or anything… it’s just that it’s a big deal. We’re going to make a huge change in our lives… something that will *always* be there," Dany explained, "It definitely requires one to sit back and say ‘Hey, look what’s about to happen’."

Jon smiled at her, the woman he could call his wife in the very near future. He was thinking about what was about to happen… and it made him happy.

*

Jon held Dany’s hand as they walked through the enormous lobby to check in to their hotel room. She’d been pretty quiet since they’d reached Oldtown about twenty minutes earlier, when she’d become awestruck by all the lights and buildings and people. Jon had to admit that it was all very impressive… and it wasn’t even nighttime yet. He also feared that since they had reached their destination, any anxiousness she felt about their impending nuptials had multiplied. She probably wouldn’t run off… but he thought it would be best to hold on to her.

Dany soaked in her surroundings as Jon talked to the man behind the registration desk so they could check in to their room. She couldn’t believe this was really happening. So recently her life had been absolutely normal, for her, anyway… and now she was in Oldtown to elope with a guy she went out on a couple of dates. Life had a funny way of knocking you on your ass and laughing at the confused look on your face.

"Dany."

She was jerked back to reality by Jon looking at her with concern, "Huh?"

"Our room won’t be ready for an hour or so. Do you want to just take our bags back to the truck and go get our marriage license?"

"Our marriage license," Dany repeated, awestruck, "Um… yeah… that’ll be fine."

"You’re alright, aren’t you?" Jon asked, growing more and more worried about her. Even if getting married was the best thing she could do as far as providing for the baby, and they had come all this way, he didn’t want Dany pushed into anything she wasn’t ready for.  
"I’m fine," Dany replied, getting herself together. She had stuff to do, and if she was acting like a simpering female it wasn’t going to happen! Taking a deep breath, she reassured Jon that what she said was true with a confident smile. Satisfied, he returned the smile before the both of them headed back towards the parking garage.

*

They found themselves in line at the Marriage Bureau fairly quickly. As they waited, they filled out the required paperwork, neither believing how easy it was to get a marriage license…. Not that they actually had expected some concerned government official to question them until sure they would make a good couple or something. It just seemed odd that something that was such a big deal was so easy to do.

Before they knew it, Dany and Jon were standing at the counter staring a clerk as she glanced through their paperwork and made sure everything was in order. Looking up at them, she smiled and said, "Looks like everything is fine, just give me a moment to print this out."

Two minutes later, they had a license to get married.

*

"Oh no," Jon groaned, entering their room.

"What?" 

"We have one king size bed. I should have thought of this… the guys think we’re a regular couple, of course they’d think we’re sharing a bed," Jon explained as he walked the rest of the way in the room, depositing all the suitcases on the floor. 

Dany followed him in and sighed, "They meant well."

"I know they did, of course Sam could have *attempted* to do something about that," Jon said, then shrugged, "We’ve been doing fine with me sleeping on the floor at home, I can do it here too. Maybe I can order a cot. It’ll look weird, but we don’t care what the hotel people think."

"Yeah," Dany replied absently, looking around the room. The guys had really been wonderful, it was a very nice room. Across from the big bed was a large screen TV. There was a small table and two chairs in one corner near an honor bar and a mini-refrigerator. On the other side of the room there was a big sliding glass door that led to a balcony with two chairs on it, so the both of them could sit out there if they liked.

"You hungry?" Jon asked her, trying to think of something they could do so they wouldn’t both sit there for hours and think about what they were doing.

Dany shook her had and looked at him, "Are you?"

"Not especially… I think I’m getting kind of nervous," he admitted.  
Dany moved to stand in front of him, "You know you can back out of this anytime, right? I’ll understand. If you want, you can even tell the guys that we got here and I changed my mind so they won’t give you flack."

"I was just about to tell you that," he smiled.

She laughed, "Well… do you?"

Jon shook his head without hesitation. Sure, he was nervous, and he had his moments of asking himself what the hell he was doing, but he knew in his heart that he wanted to marry her, "How about you?"

"No… I’m nervous, but everyone gets the jitters, right? Even people who have real weddings."

"Absolutely," he agreed, "If you were totally calm about something this important, that would be strange."

Relaxing with the knowledge that he was just as scared as she, Dany sat down on the bed and picked up the remote, "Think we get any good channels?"

*

Jon sighed and glanced at his watch before staring at the bathroom door, willing it to open. If Dany didn’t get done soon, they’d be late to their own wedding.

At long last, the door creaked open and Dany apprehensively stepped out. Jon’s breath left his body as he was taken aback by her beauty. She had her hair out of the braidings and cascading over her shoulders like spun silk. The dress that the guys had gotten her fit perfectly, making her look nothing short of gorgeous.

And she was going to be his *wife*.

Of course, he wouldn’t be making love to her on their wedding night, or any other night for that matter. He couldn’t look at her and know that he was the lucky guy who got to be in her bed every night… but he could pretend.

"You look very nice," she smiled, looking him over in his suit.

"Thanks," he replied, "You look pretty good too."

"I can’t believe I took so long, we’re going to be late," Dany sighed as she saw the clock on the nightstand. She quickly grabbed her jacket and put it on, "I know it doesn’t match my dress, but it’s cold out."

"You still look wonderful," Jon grinned, grabbing his own coat and putting it on. He opened the door for her so that the both of them could leave the hotel and head to the wedding chapel.

*

"I was thinking after this we could go somewhere for dinner and maybe walk around for a while… look at stuff. Unless you want to just go back to the room… and watch TV or something," Jon told Dany while they drove to the chapel. 

Dany smiled and laughed sardonically, "God, ‘after this’? It’s almost like we’re not getting married, but just running an errand."

"Sorry, I didn’t mean to…."

"No, don’t apologize. You have nothing to be sorry for. It’s just that this whole situation is… almost funny."

Jon nodded slightly, not really knowing what to say. She was scared, depressed and nervous… and so was he. He had no idea how to make himself feel better, so what could he do to help her?

Before they knew it, Jon was pulling into the small parking lot of the chapel. The both of them leaned forward in their seats once he had stopped the car and checked out the site of their wedding.

"Wow, that’s actually pretty," Dany commented, "I’d pictured some gaudy thing with neon lights."

"Yeah, it almost looks like a church," Jon agreed, then smiled at her, "Maybe if I tell my family that when I tell them what we’ve done, they won’t kill me quite as much."

"You didn’t tell them yet?"

Jon shook his head, "I don’t know how they’ll react to this. I seriously doubt they will jump for joy, but they may just deal. However, there is the chance they’ll freak and forbid me… so if I were to do this…"

"You would be directly disobeying them, which makes doing this ten times as bad. If you don’t tell the, you’re technically not going against their wishes," Dany concluded.

"That’s the gist of it."

Dany grinned, "That’s why I didn’t tell Jorah. I figure after we get home I will go over and we’ll have a long talk… clear the air… get him all caught up. I hope he doesn’t hate me."

"He won’t," Jon assured her.

"How do you know?"

"I can’t imagine anyone who knows you finding anything to hate about you. From what you have told me, Jorah is a very smart man… he won’t give up his relationship with you."  
Dany smiled at him, wishing things were different. He was so… amazing. She could totally see them getting married… for real… if only they weren’t in this situation.  
Jon took a deep breath and said, "Let’s go get married."

*

"Are you okay?"

Dany nodded, "Just nervous. You?"

"Same," Jon replied, glancing at their surroundings. Everything was happening so quickly. Once they had entered the building, they’d been busy signing papers and showing their license before Dany had been handed a bouquet and the both of them had been shown to the chapel. Now a Septon was preparing for the ceremony and a friendly older woman who was going to act as their witness was sitting in one of the empty pews. This was not at all how he had envisioned his wedding… but Jon found that when he looked at Dany… he really didn’t mind it that much.

The Septon smiled at the young couple as he moved in front of them. They both looked rather petrified, but he was used to it. He’d been performing ceremonies in Oldtown for nearly ten years, and he’d gotten to be rather an expert at judging people. Most of the couples he saw were older than these two and had either planned the wedding out before heading to Oldtown, or had decided to do it once they’d arrived. However, he saw a lot of kids getting married for various reasons… quite often because the girl was pregnant, he suspected. This one wasn’t showing… yet, so he wasn’t sure, but that was very possibly the case. At least they weren’t at each other’s throats or looking like this was the last place they wanted to be…. these two stood a chance.

"Shall we get this show on the road?" he asked, smiling warmly.

The both of them returned his smile, albeit nervously, and nodded their heads.

The Septon cleared his throat and began, "Dearly beloved, we are gathered together here in the sight of the Gods, and in the face of this company, to join together this Man and this Woman in holy Matrimony. Into this estate these two persons present come now to be joined. If any man can show just cause, why they may not lawfully be joined together, let him now speak, or else hereafter for ever hold his peace."

Nobody spoke up, not that they really expected an objection from their only witness, although Dany did have a daydream of Drogo rushing into the chapel after realizing what a fool he’d been and begging her for another chance.

"I require and charge you both, that if either of you know any impediment, why you may not be lawfully joined together in Matrimony, you do now confess it. For be you well assured, that if any persons are joined together other than as these words allow, their marriage is not lawful," the Septon continued.

Jon felt blood rush to his face as he listened to the words the Septon was saying. He prayed he wouldn’t go to Hell. Sure, this marriage was a lie… but he *was* performing a good deed.  
Satisfied that the couple felt they were doing the right thing, the Septon said, "Look upon each other and say the words”. And both, Jon and Dany recited together, in unison, "Father, Smith, Warrior, Mother, Maiden, Crone, Stranger..." Jon swallowed "I am hers and she is mine. From this day, until the end of my days," while Dany quietly repeated her own verses, "I am his and he is mine. From this day, until the end of my days."

The next thing they knew, Jon was pulling a couple of ring boxes out of his pocket. Dany was dumbfounded; she hadn’t even thought about the jewelry that was required. Then again, he was constantly so thoughtful- why should she be surprised?

Holding her hand in his, Jon slid a ring on her finger and said, "With this ring, I thee wed."

He handed her a larger ring, which she soon concluded was to be his. Nodding, she slid it onto his finger, despite her shaking hand, and said, "With this ring, I thee wed."

"Jon and Dany have consented together in holy wedlock, and have witnessed the same before Gods and this company, and thereto have given and pledged their troth, each to the other, and have declared the same by giving and receiving a Ring, and by joining hands; I pronounce that they are Husband and Wife," the Septon declared, grinning, "Please, kiss the bride."

Numbly, they looked at each other for a moment before Jon dipped his head down and kissed her. He was so… overwhelmed that he didn’t even think about the fact that she wasn’t really his girlfriend… or wife. Dany let him, getting caught up in the feelings he invoked in her when their mouths met.

Breathless, they pulled apart and looked each other in the eye as a realization hit them- they were married.


	17. Of mornings

"This is beautiful," Dany commented as she watched the water shooting in the air. They’d been standing in front of the Sunset Sea hotel for a while, at first just watching the calm waters and enjoying the serenity, then observing their impressive water show where the water to shot up or sprayed in a certain direction while music played in coordination.

"Yeah," Jon agreed, awe-struck as he watched the water shoot several hundred feet in the air.

They had both been very quiet since leaving the wedding chapel, both feeling rather numb and not quite grasping the fact that they were married. Jon had driven them back to The Hightower’s Palace, and when they were getting out of his truck in the parking garage, the both of them had agreed that they’d rather not go back to their room right away. And since neither had an appetite… they were checking out the sights.

As the show came to an end, they looked at each other to decide where to go next, but were interrupted by the cold spray of water that hit them, apparently from the last time the water had shot in the air. Jon gasped in shock while Dany laughed.

"I wasn’t expecting that," Jon said.

She nodded, "Yeah, it’s cold enough without getting wet. Where should we go now?"

"Well, there’s the Mirage, which has a volcano… and Treasure Island, which has a pirate show. Those are next to our hotel. And *at* our hotel, there’s all those nice shops we heard about," Jon informed her, since he had spent quite a bit of time reading about all the attractions Oldtown had to offer.

"What do you want to do?"

"I’m thinking if we go look at those shops, it’ll take hours, and I’m kind of getting hungry. So, if you feel up to it, we can grab some dinner and just check out the volcano and pirate show tonight," he suggested.

"Sounds like a plan, now let’s find somewhere to eat."

"Let's check this place out," Jon said, walking towards the entrance of the casino, "You craving anything? I know how pregnant women are."

Dany smiled at his teasing, "Nothing yet; pickles still aren’t any more appealing than normal."

After wandering around for a while, finding only bars and really fancy restaurants as well as a buffet with an exceedingly long line, they came across a café with a nice, normal menu. Satisfied, they decided it would suit their needs for their wedding dinner.

Once they were seated, they busied themselves by checking out their menus and deciding on what they wanted to eat. After their waiter had taken their orders, they shared an awkward moment of silence until Dany thought of something to talk about.

"So, when do you think we’ll get our apartment?"

Jon thought it over, "Well, I am pretty sure Colonel Davos is going to make things happen as fast as possible for me, so that will help. I’ll email our marriage certificate to them tomorrow, so as soon as we get back we can submit the rest of our paperwork, which probably involves some things I will need you to sign, by the way, so that it can be documented and verified. Then they have to do the paperwork to get the funds for out apartment and put in my pay raise and all that. I think it’ll be the end of next week before that’s done. Odds are, they’ll pick the apartment for us, so I’d give them a week or two to do that… then it’s just a matter of a moving in date."

"So… we’ll probably be in the for another month," Dany concluded.

He nodded, "You hate it there?"  
"Oh, that’s not it at all," she protested, "The guys are so incredibly sweet, it’s just that you have to sleep on the floor in your own room! Plus… as nice as they are to me, I feel like I’m cramping their style."

"Trust me, they all adore you… they don’t mind at all. I’m expecting a lot of phone calls and visits from them after we do get our own place," he told her.

"They are so cute," Dany laughed. "Do you think they’ll get us a two-bedroom?"

"Yeah, since they know about the baby, they won’t make us spend six months or something in a one bedroom, then move us into a two bedroom. I was thinking I would have one room and you could share the other with the baby… then you’d be close to him or her… and we get our own rooms."

"Sounds perfect," she said, "Oh, but what about furniture? I didn’t think about that at all! I mean, the baby stuff I can worry about later, but I have *nothing*. I could see if my mom will let me have my bedroom furniture, and you have yours from the fraternity… but we need couches and a table and stuff!"

"Don’t worry, I’ve got money," Jon assured her.

"Jon, all that furniture is going to cost us thousands of dollars."

"Well, I have quite a bit of money saved. I get a paycheck for my job, you know. I don’t have to pay rent, or for food or school or anything. I have my truck all paid off, so I just have minor expenses like gas, clothes and a few other things. Everything else I have made for years has been put into savings."

Dany shook her head, "Absolutely not! I am not going to let you spend your hard earned money on me. This was my mistake, and my decision to go the difficult route."

Jon smiled, not surprised by her vehement protests, "Look, the furniture in my room belongs to the house, not me. I’m going to have to buy that anyway. Plus, I like sitting on a couch when I watch TV, and eating my meals at a table, so it’s in my interest to buy that stuff anyway. If you’d prefer, it can be all my furniture that I will allow you to use."

Dany narrowed her eyes, "You’re patronizing me."

"Just a little," he replied with a shrug.

"Fine… we’ll buy furniture… but I will pay you back."

"With what?" he asked.

"I’m getting a job," Dany informed him.

"Dany, you don’t need one. I’m getting extra money for you two, and I wouldn’t feel right if I didn’t *spend* it on you two. Besides, I *want* to do it."

"I still need a job," she insisted, "It’s just that now I can get a part-time job. I don’t have to worry about paying rent and stuff, and now I can go to school, but babies aren’t cheap. When I was looking on your computer the other day, I found a site with baby furniture and clothes and all the other equipment… it’s expensive. And that’s not including the crib and all that. Plus, after the baby comes, I have to buy diapers and when they are a few months old I am on my own, so it would be nice if I have some savings set up."

"What are you planning on getting a job doing?"

"Well, I don’t know. Maybe as a waitress?"

Jon sighed, "Look, right now you are basically just as healthy as before you got pregnant, but in a couple of months you’re going to start showing and getting bigger and bigger and moving around fast is going to be a problem. I… well, I hate the idea of you running around for hardly any money when you are six months pregnant."

Dany conceded that waitressing may not be the most fun job to have when she was pregnant, "I’ll look around for other stuff. I know you’re very against me working in my condition and you’d like me to let you take care of me, but I can’t. I’m independent… and besides, even though you know everything, I feel like I am taking advantage of you. It’s not like I am telling you it’s *your* baby, but you’re very generous and for me to let you be so generous to me is wrong. You want to give too much and I would feel wretched guilt if I let you. Please, can you just let me do this without arguing?"

Jon nodded reluctantly; knowing this was ultimately Dany’s decision… and he had seen she could be very stubborn when she wanted. Their food was served right then, so the subject was dropped at they began eating and only conversed about light subjects.

*

Jon stepped out of the bathroom and couldn’t help but take a moment to appreciate how beautiful Dany was as she sat cross-legged on the bed and brushed through her hair. It was only nine in the evening, but the both of them had been exhausted from getting up early, making the long drive, the sightseeing they’d done after dinner… and of course, their wedding.

Dany looked up at him and smiled, forcing him to stop staring at her. Awkwardly, he moved through the room and dumped his dirty clothes on top of his suitcase, praying she hadn’t noticed his odd behavior.

"Do you want to sleep right now, or do you want to watch some TV first?" Dany asked, setting her brush on the nightstand. "Now that I’ve had a chance to get off my feet and take those heels off I feel a lot better… and not really exhausted."

"TV sounds good, anything interesting on?"  
"I don’t know… but we have HBO, so maybe we can get some movie our families won’t want us watching," she joked.

"Good idea… because they’ll probably be pissed off at us enough as it is with the whole eloping thing," Jon grinned, sitting down at the foot of the bed.

Dany smiled sadly, "I really hope this doesn’t mess up your relationship with your family."

"It won’t, I swear," he assured her, "My aunt, who I considered as a second mom would prefer that she actually be present at my wedding, and get to meet my bride before, so she might freak when I first tell her, but she’ll understand after a little time. I’m going to tell her the whole truth, and I really believe that she’ll approve. She’s always raised me to believe that when you see a woman who needs help, you give it to her. This may be a little extreme… but she will accept it."

"How’s she going to feel about a divorce, though? I’ve never been really religious, but I know that goes against the Gods beliefs."

Jon nodded, "I just figure the part where I elope with you will be the big shocker… the divorce will be small… and kind of inevitable."

"Yeah," she sighed as she picked up the remote and turning on the TV. After a few moments of channel surfing, the two of them agreed on watching The Breakfast Club.

After an hour and a half, the both of them were completely relaxed, sitting side by side with their backs against the sideboard. As the end credits began to roll down the screen, Dany yawned and Jon realized he was pretty tired himself.

Grabbing two of the pillows, Jon stood up and started walking to an empty spot on the floor to make his bed. Dany leaned forward and bit her bottom lip as she considered her idea.

"You don’t have to do that."

Startled, Jon looked over at her, "What?"

She shrugged nonchalantly and said, "We’re adults… we both have an agreement that our relationship is purely platonic and the only reason we got married is for the financial help. We know that we aren’t going to have sex or anything… and this is a really big bed. Why can’t we just sleep next to each other? I really see nothing wrong with it."

Jon considered what she said and slowly nodded, "I’m fine with it if you are."

"I am," she smiled, rising to the challenge they had set for each other.

Jon turned around and climbed back on the bed, putting the pillows back before pulling to covers over him as Dany settled herself on the other side of the bed. Simultaneously, they turned off the lamps on their nightstands.

After a moment of silence in the darkened room, Dany quietly said, "Goodnight, Jon."

Jon smiled, "Goodnight, Dany."


	18. Of explorings

Jon jerked awake and opened his eyes, finding the room still dark. A few seconds later, he realized why he had woken up in the middle of the night as Dany once again ran her hand over his chest.

"D-Dany?"

He could barely make out a smile on her face from a small amount of light filtering in through the blinds covering the sliding glass door that led to the balcony. Somehow, he could also see an almost dangerous look in her eyes… that intrigued him.

"I was having second thoughts," she said, "Maybe being your wife in every sense of the word is a better plan."

"Dany," he repeated, in a lower voice.

"Shh," she replied, sitting up slightly so that her lips were less than an inch from his.

"Okay," he whispered.

Dany chuckled before dipping her head down and capturing Jon’s mouth in a searing kiss. Every time their lips met, he was overwhelmed by the sensations that assaulted his body. To him, this girl was more potent than any drug, sweeter than any candy, more wonderful than anything else in the world.

Before he knew it, Dany had pulled back and was on her knees on the bed, unbuttoning her nightshirt. Following her lead, Jon sat up and pulled his t-shirt over his head and began pushing his sweatpants down his legs. Dany abandoned her task when only half done with her own clothing and began helping in the effort. Soon both Jon’s pants and boxers were off and he was left nude in the bed with his erection straining against his belly. Dany smiled serenely down at him and returned to unbuttoning her nightshirt. At long last, she was done, and slowly pulling the two sides down her arms, revealing to Jon the most beautiful pair of breasts he had ever seen.

They weren’t the largest, but she was a very small girl and for her frame… they were quite voluptuous. Perfectly rounded, creamy white and just aching to fill his palms. So he did just that, gently squeezing both with his hands, smiling at the way Dany’s eyes closed as a moan came from deep in her throat.

"I’ve wanted you for so long, Jon," Dany sighed, opening her eyes and smiling at him before leaning over to kiss him again.

Jon returned the kiss eagerly, moving his hands to the back of her head, to keep her against him. She always seemed like she was just out of his grasp, all he wanted to do was hold on to her tightly and never let her go. He felt her body move on top of his and moved his hands down to run over her smooth back while he lifted his hips in a silent plea for her to give him permission to enter her.

Dany broke the kiss and sat up again, but before Jon could protest, he felt her hand grasp the base of his erection and knew it was time. Slowly, she slid down on his length, making him see stars at the intense pleasure of feeling her warmth surround him. For a moment, she remained still, and he went along with it, knowing her experience was limited, and not wanted to hurt her. Instead, he was content to put his hands on her hips and gently caress her skin.

She settled herself back down against his chest and kissed a path over his jawbone as she began rolling her hips back and forth and moaning her pleasure. Jon was lost, only able to thrust his hips up to increase their contact, while grunting and gasping as waves of pleasure swept over him.

As they both grew closer to climax, Dany pulled them both into a sitting position so that she could move her hips more without losing contact with him. They mouths and hands were wild, moving everywhere over each other’s bodies as they raced to the finish line. Jon was so close… just a few more thrusts and he knew he’d be coming. He wanted her to come with him, so he moved his hand where their bodies met and found her tender pearl. Gently, so as not to overstimulate her, he rubbed it with his index finger, almost immediately bringing her to orgasm. Feeling her strong muscles milk him, Jon let himself go, spilling his seed inside her.

"Jon!"

Jon panted as his body shook with his release, barely registering Dany as she called out his name.

"Jon," she repeated, and he realized she didn’t sound like she was crying out his name in ecstasy, but was instead speaking in a concerned voice.

Slowly, he opened his eyes and found the room flooded with light and Dany leaning over him. Her hair was soaking wet and upon further inspection, he saw she was in nothing but a towel, standing beside the bed with her hand on his shoulder.

It had all been a dream.

"Jon, are you okay? I just came out here because I needed my brush and I you looked like you were in pain or something. Plus, your face is all red."

Jon realized how truly naïve she was. She had no idea that this what a man looked when he was having an orgasm. It made him feel all the more guilty for the dream he’d just had about her… and the evidence of that dream that had caused his underwear to be soaking wet. 

"I think my blood pressure is up."

Dany sighed and sat on the edge of the bed. Jon didn’t dare look down to see if it was possible for her to notice the wet spot. He wasn’t sure it had gone through the bedspread, and she’d freak if she found out the truth. "Is it because you just realized you’re married?"

Jon smiled and shook his head, "I just had a dream. A dream I called my family, actually."

"Oh… you know, I was thinking about that. Maybe if you say ‘Hey, Y’all, I just got back from eloping in Oldtown with this knocked up freshman, but the good news is it’s not my baby and after a year it’ll be like it never happened,’ they’ll be so relieved by the last part that the first part won’t upset so much," Dany grinned.

"I’ll have to keep that in mind," he replied.

"Well, I better go get my hair dry," she said, getting up and walking around the bed to grab her hairbrush from the nightstand. "Are you in a big rush to get in the shower? I can just get dressed and dry my hair out here."

"Okay, that’ll work. Then we can go get some breakfast sooner… I’m already starving," he said, eager to clean himself up. He couldn’t believe he had a wet dream! He hadn’t had one in *years*.  
Then again, Dany had a way of making him do things he wouldn’t normally do.

*

"Here," Jon said, putting a penny in Dany’s palm, "Make a wish."

Dany smiled at his sentimentalism and looked at the fountain, trying to pick just one thing to wish for. When had life gotten so difficult? A year earlier, her choice would have been easy- to spend the rest of her life being happy with Drogo. Now it seemed so much less important, something that sounded nice, but wishing her baby would be born healthy and stay that way seemed a lot better. Looking at Jon and seeing how he took everything in with wide eyes, almost like an innocent child at times, yet a man in every sense of the word when it really mattered…. she knew what she wanted. Silently wishing that this whole make-believe life they had created for everyone so that her baby would have a better life would stop being make-believe and start being reality, Dany tossed the coin into the fountain.

"Nice shot, I bet it comes true," Jon commented, winking at her. "What did you wish for?"

"If I tell you that, it’ll *never* come true!"

"I know… I always have to ask, though. Call me nosy."

"Okay Nosy," she teased, "Want to go around town?"

*

"So, what should we do tonight?" Jon grinned as Dany practically collapsed into the booth across from him in the Valyrian restaurant they had chosen for their dinner.

"I’m thinking sit around and watch my feet fall off. We did a *lot* today," Dany sighed.

"Too bad we didn’t bring bathing suits or we could go for a swim in the hotel pool."

"Also, it’s forty degrees out," Dany remarked as she lifted up her menu.

Jon rolled his eyes, "Forty degrees is *warm*! You Southerners are wimps."

Dany lowered her menu and gave Jon a look that would have made him shiver had he not been so amused, "Them is fightin’ words. Don’t tell me you want me to go jump in a pool in my underwear just to prove a point to you."

Actually, the idea of that didn’t sound too horrid to Jon. He didn’t want her getting sick or anything… but the image of her in her underwear was almost irresistible to him.

"I take it back," he finally replied, giving her a smile.

Satisfied, Dany went back to her menu, while Jon picked up his own and prepared to do the same. He realized that he was rather wishing the guys had booked their hotel room for a few more days… he was having a great time with Dany. Even when they’d been going through the shops, a pastime Jon had always disliked, he’d enjoyed himself because he had been with *her*.

At least he had the knowledge that they’d be living together for the next year. That was an entire year of seeing Dany every day. Eating meals with Dany, talking to Dany… hanging out with Dany. He knew without a doubt that he’d enjoy every minute of it. After a year, though….. Edd was right, in a way, he had gotten himself into a huge mess. But it really hadn’t begun with marrying Dany… as soon as he’d set eyes on her, he was lost. He might as well have fun with his downward spiral.

*

"So, are you ready to go back to our room?" Jon asked as the two of them walked through the casino, having just left the restaurant.

"Sure," Dany replied, then stopped and picked something up off the ground.

Jon stopped as well, watching to see what she had found. Dany stood and held up a coin.  
Grinning, she said, "It’s a silver dragon."

"Cool," Jon said, "How are you going to spend your fortune?"

She handed him the coin, "I want you to put it in one of these machines."

Jon shook his head, "I’ve never gambled before."

"So, it’s only a dragon! Besides, it’s not really mine since I only found it and if you lose it, I won’t care," Dany argued, "Maybe you’ll have beginners luck!"

Jon sighed and nodded his head. After all, it was her money, if she wanted him to waste it…

They wandered around for a few moments until Dany decided on a machine. Jon had no idea how she could tell which one was a winner, but if it made her happy, he’d go along with it. When she directed him to take a seat, he tried to protest because she had picked a dragon machine instead of a stag or penny one, so he would only be able to play one hand. Dany wouldn’t hear of it, though, and Jon found himself wishing she was three years older so she could play the damn thing herself.

Sighing, he put the coin in and pulled the lever. The machine starting dinging and the light above began flashing. Jon’s eyes widened as the credits on the machine went up and up. Turning, he saw Dany jumping up and down and clapping her hands.

Jon was completely numb to everything around him. Only one fact permeated his brain… they’d won.

*

"Five hundred dragons!" Dany exclaimed, flopping down on the bed. 

Jon just shook his head and smiled down at her before tossing his jacket on one of the chairs.  
Pushing herself into a sitting position, she said, "I know it’s not all the money in the world, but to think I just *found* a dragon and we ended up with *five hundred*. Just think, it’s like being handed five hundred dragons for doing nothing, Jon."

"I know," he replied, "So how are you planning on spending it?"

"How are *we* planning on spending it," she corrected, "It’s *our* money. I found the dragon and you played the machine."

"Dany, it’s okay, you keep the money."

Dany shook her head, "Jon, it will make me happy and I will feel a little bit better about this whole thing if I can at least share five hundred dragons… and I know the first thing I want to use my 250 for!"

Jon watched her stand up and pick up a twenty from the pile of bills the cashier had given them for the win before walking to the door.  
"I’ll be back in a few," she grinned.

"Wait, Dany…. Let me come with you," he protested.

Dany shook her head, "I want to surprise you… just hang out here."

Jon reluctantly nodded, letting her walk out the door alone before climbing on the bed and grabbing the remote control. Glancing at the clock, he saw it was after seven and wondered how soon it would be before Dany went to sleep. Hopefully she’d be conked out early enough for him to sneak out and complete his task, because he was pretty sure they’d be so busy the next morning checking out that he wouldn’t be able to get away from her long enough to do it then.

He’d finally settled on watching a movie when Dany reappeared with two ice cream sundaes in hand. Sitting up, he gave her a grateful smile as she handed him one.

"I like this surprise," he said, "Thank you."

Dany shrugged and sat down on the edge of the bed, "I know it probably wasn’t the most responsible thing for me to spend my money on, since I am going to need every penny I can get for the baby… but it’s our honeymoon… and it was only a few dragons."

"I don’t think it was irresponsible at all," Jon told her, shoving a spoonful of the delicious treat in his mouth, "Nobody expects you to spend everything on the baby. You *have* to spend it on yourself too."

Dany nodded, "I know… it’s just that I don’t want my baby deprived of anything."

"They won’t," Jon said confidently, "I know you, and I am positive that you will always put that baby first. It will have everything it needs."

Dany smiled at him, appreciating his reassurance. He honestly did have absolute faith in her… she really didn’t know what she’d do without him. Everyone else who loved her had doubted her, but not Jon. She scooted up onto the bed and leaned her back against the pillows so she could watch TV with him.

"Ooh, ‘Avengers’… I love this movie," she told him.

Jon turned his head and looked at her in surprise, "Really?"

"Yeah.. I’ve seen it a bunch of times, which wasn’t easy because it was rated R and I was only fourteen when that came out," Dany replied, "But I was in love with Robert Downing Jr, convinced that I would marry him, so I sucked it up and flirted with a boy from school. He was a total dork, but he had a crush on me and worked the box office at the movie theater in the mall, so it worked."

"Ouch, that was kind of mean of you," Jon teased.  
Dany nodded, "I was seriously a jerk back in the day. I was the popular girl… and I treated all those that were beneath me like dirt."

"Well, we all do things when we’re young that make us cringe later."

"So true… like, the whole Robert Downing Jr’ thing. Okay, he’s a cute guy, but I was all *crazy* for him."

"Plus, wasn’t he kind of old for you?"

"I guess…," she grinned.

"You probably liked Christian because you needed a father figure."

Dany wrinkled her nose, "I forgot that you were a psych major."

"Sorry," he apologized, looking down. He tended to do that to people; go from a normal conversation into a psychological analysis and make them feel completely uncomfortable.

"It’s okay… and you’re probably right. I do have a tendency to fall for guys that are way too old for me. Drogo’s over two thirty*."

"Are you serious?!" Jon exclaimed, "I mean, that is old and he’s double your age."

"Yeah, but he doesn’t *look* old. Besides… we were in love. Age really didn’t matter," she sighed.

"I’m sorry," he apologized again, "It was just a shocker."

"Hey, it’s okay! I’m fine, see," she said, giving him a big grin for his benefit. "I’ve resolved to stop being The Amazing Hormonal Crying Girl and instead be the girl I have always been- strong and unflappable."

"Unflappable?"

"Okay, I was never unflappable, but I could try!"

"That’s alright," he said, patting her leg, "I don’t want you to hurt yourself."

Dany gave him a mock glare and grabbed one of the pillows next to her before flinging it at his head and hitting her target dead-on. Jon laughed and put the pillow under his chest so he’d be more comfortable lying on his stomach on the bed.

The two of them paid attention to the movie, in a good mood once again.


	19. Of family

Jon smiled when he turned around after nearly two hours to find that Dany had fallen asleep while watching the movie. Careful not to shake the bed too much, he got up and moved around to her, pulling the blankets down under her body, praying she wouldn’t wake up. Luckily, she didn’t, and he was able to pull off her shoes and get her all tucked in without causing her to even stir.

He threw away the plastic containers from their sundaes and slipped his coat on. With one quick glance, he crept out the door and prayed she wouldn’t awake while he was gone.

*  
"So… you had fun, right?"

"Yes, I did!" Dany replied, "I mean, when we were coming here, I think we both had the idea that this was just something that we had to ‘get through’ and I hadn’t planned on having anything that resembled fun, but I really enjoyed myself."

"I did too," Jon replied, giving her a smile before returning his focus to the crowded freeway. They’d left the hotel half an hour earlier and hadn’t gone very far. What kind of city had bumper to bumper traffic on a Wednesday? The only excuse he could think of was that the sky was extremely gray and a few drops of rain had sprinkled the road… but it was far from slick.

"So tell me about your family. You know how messed up mine is… I’d like to hear about one that turned out right," she said, "I always wanted a big family."

"Well, that’s kind of funny, because there were quite a few occasions when I wanted to be an only child," he chuckled, "But overall.. well, someday I want to have my own family and I want more than one kid, so I guess that says it all."

"Yeah," Dany said quietly, imagining Jon playing with three or four little kids… wishing that they could be *their* kids. But any chance they’d had for that before was gone now…

"So, my family is my uncle and aunt. My mother was a single mom and when she died I was 3 and I went to live with her brother, and I’ve always considered him as a father figure. I have 5 cousins, whom I think of as siblings. I have an older brother, Robb. He lives in Winterfell, but in Horwood, which is just about a half hour drive from our parents’ manon, so he gets to be near everyone. He’s a city counselor."

"Wow, that’s pretty impressive," Dany commented.

"Yeah… we’re proud of him. Of course, Robb’s twenty six, married and he’s got a set of boy and girl five-year-old twins and a two-year-old little boy. I got to be there when his wife, Talysa, delivered him."

"Oh, that must have been cool."

"Actually, the first word I use to describe it is always ‘gross’, but since I do tell everyone about that whenever I mention Rodrik, I have to admit it was cool."

"Your brother was fairly young when he got married too… so maybe it won’t be so bad that we did the same." Dany commented.

"Yeah… but that was a huge family scandal. Robb fell deeply in love with one of the junior associates at my dad’s law firm. Talysa was ten years older than him. But they accepted his wish to get married when they saw he really did love her and it wasn’t just some schoolboy thing. I think it’s mellowed them when his wife got pregnant with twins.”

"Your uncle slash dad is a lawyer? I thought he was a farmer."

Jon smiled and shook his head, "Most people think that, to hear me talk… but he’s not. There are two types of people who own farms- those who get up at the crack of dawn and work hard all day long…. And those who buy the farm, pay people, and enjoy the nature. My father *is* a hard worker… but he made his money being a damn fine lawyer."

"Oh, I have no doubt that whatever your father did, he worked hard to earn it. I can tell."

"How?"

"Because I see how you turned out," Dany answered, "Tell me more."

"Okay, I have two younger sisters. Sansa, who’s eighteen, she’s going to Winterfell State, but it’s only twenty minutes from our house, so she’s back there often. Arya is seventeen and Bran is sixteen, both in High School, and there’s the youngest, Rikkon, who’s thirteen. My dad is sort of half-retired. He still works, but not every day. He’ll go in a couple days a week, make sure everything is running smoothly, and occasionally take a case. My aunt stays at home and is very active in church and community stuff."

"Wow, you guys are the epitome of the Westerosi family, only not really," Dany said, "I mean… you guys are what everyone *wants*, but most of us are too messed up to actually *be*."

Jon thought her words over. She really was right; he was very lucky for his family. He didn’t appreciate them nearly enough for how much they’ve done for taking him in, as their own… and yet the next time he talked to his aunt and uncle, he had to give them some news that was going to blow them right out of the water.


	20. Of amends

"So, what’d you guys do?" Tormund questioned as everyone sat in the large dining room of Castle Black. 

The guys had all made a huge spaghetti dinner in honor of Dany and Jon’s homecoming and had forced them not to help, but instead relax after their long trip. They’d gone along with it, since they were honestly exhausted after the past three days.

Grenn snorted and Pyp smacked Tormund in the arm, but he just continued to grin shamelessly while Dany and Jon blushed furiously at his implication.

"Just tell me, did you guys see *anything* unique to Oldtown other than when you were in the car on the way to the hotel?" Tormund asked.

"We saw plenty," Dany assured him, "There is this really cool water show outside a hotel … and there was this really nice mall that was actually in our hotel."

"Plus, we watched a pirate show and a fake volcano erupt," Jon added, making a point to leave out quite a few of the places they had gone to so the guys wouldn’t make jokes about Mr. Goody-Two-Shoes actually sight-seeing for his entire honeymoon instead of consummating his marriage with his new bride.

"Oh, before I forget," Pyp said, "We got the marriage certificate you emailed us and gave it to Davos. He wants you down there tomorrow to fill paperwork out… and you guys have to make arrangements for Dany to sign stuff too."

"Where am I going to do that?" Dany asked, "They won’t let me go down there."

Pyp shrugged, "Maybe Davos can come up here. All I know is that you have to do it in the presence of him, so maybe he’ll just come to you."

Dany bit her lip and shared a worried glance. They’d have to start acting like a real couple for an *important* person the next day.

*

"So, do I need to make a point to be here all day tomorrow?" Dany asked as she watched Jon pull pajamas out of his dresser.

"Well, I’m going to go see Colonel Davos first thing in the morning. After that, I will be able to tell you when or *if* I’m going to need you to be around," Jon replied, "Did you have somewhere you needed to go?"

"I want to talk to Jorah. I need to do it as soon as I can because otherwise I’m going to get an ulcer."  
"I know how you feel," he sighed, "And Sam brought up a really good point today. When we moved in here we had to sign a bunch of papers. Among them were agreements about our expectancy of privacy. They have the right to monitor any and all phone calls we make from here, so just in case, I ought to call my family from your cell phone, if that’s ok?"

"Yeah, that would be a good idea," Dany agreed, "The last thing we need is to be convicted of fraud."

Pajamas in hand, Jon walked over to the door, "I’m going to go change, are you going to do the same in here?"

Dany nodded, "Sure."

Once he was out the door, Dany grabbed her nightshirt out of the as-yet-unpacked suitcase and tossed it on the bed. She quickly undressed and frowned as she put them in the pile of dirty clothes she was quickly accumulating. She’d have to do some laundry soon.

She had just finished buttoning up the nightshirt when there was a knock at the door. Assuming it was Jon making sure she was decent before coming back in, she said, "Come in."

Instead, Dany was surprised by Edd walking into the room, "Jon’s not here?"

"No," she replied, "He’s in the bathroom. He’ll be back really soon, though, I’m sure."

Edd nodded and started to leave the room, then had a change of heart, "Since we have this chance, I’d like to talk to you."

Dany nodded apprehensively; she’d always gotten a sense of disapproval about the whole wedding thing from Edd, so she had a feeling this wouldn’t be a heartwarming talk.

Edd shut the door so they wouldn’t be overheard and leaned against Jon’s desk. "Look, I don’t think you’re the type to take advantage of a person’s generosity. I know you didn’t convince Jon to do this, he suggested it to you. But for the record, I think it’s a huge mistake. I feel bad for you for what happened… the guy who got you pregnant is a jerk, and it was wrong of him to just ditch you like that. It was also wrong of you to go along with this. Yeah, Jon is the one who said it, not you, but you didn’t have to agree. Jon’s my best friend and his best interests are what I am concerned about. I know you have a lot of things to worry about these days, but I am damn pissed that Jon’s feelings weren’t one of them."

"I care about Jon," Dany protested, her voice wavering as her own doubts made her wonder if Edd was wrong at all. "I don’t want to hurt him and this isn’t going to! He’s just helping me and he swears that it’s not hard on him."

"Jon is, like, the noblest guy I know and because of you he is lying to the U.S. Military! You’d see that if you knew Jon well, but you don’t. All you know is he is some poor sap with a crush on you who is willing to risk everything to help you out after you fucked up," Edd told her angrily.

Neither had noticed Jon entering the room a moment earlier, just in time to hear Edd’s angry accusation. "I can’t believe you! Dany, don’t listen to him, he is delusional. Edd, stop being an asshole! I can’t believe you are attacking her. This is none of your damn business, but she did nothing wrong. I’m an adult. If you don’t like *my* actions, hold *me* accountable."

Edd sighed and shook his head, "I don’t know why I even bother."

"Neither do I," Jon replied as he watched his friend leave the room, turning back to Dany, he could tell by the look on her face that Edd’s words had done damage and he needed to fix it right away, "Look, he’s wrong. Edd can’t know me better than I do."

"He doesn’t… but he’s right. Oh Jon, I feel so guilty!"

"Don’t, please… don’t make us go through this again," Jon pleaded, "I know you feel bad, but you shouldn’t. It doesn’t matter anyway, because we’re married. It’s done… no amount of guilt is going to change that. All it’s going to do is make me more angry at Edd… you don’t want me mad at my friend, do you?"

Dany shook her head and walked over to the bed. Why couldn’t things be simple for once? Why did she have to get pregnant with Drogo’s baby, only to be dumped by him? Why did the way she was able to have a home and money for her baby have to involve hurting Jon?

Jon grabbed a couple pillows to sleep on that night, hoping once she got a good night’s sleep, Dany would feel better about everything. He couldn’t wait until they got their own apartment… away from Edd. As great a friend he was… Jon wanted to kill him at that moment.

"Um, Jon?"

Jon looked up to see Dany sitting on the bed, looking more innocent and damn gorgeous than he had ever seen her.

"Sleep here… like I said the other night, we’re adults. It would make me feel better if you could at least sleep in your own bed," she said, "We know it doesn’t do any harm for us to just share a bed; nothing happened the past two nights."

If she knew about the dream he’d had the first night, she probably wouldn’t have said that, but luckily she didn’t… and Jon enjoyed sleeping beside her far too much to let the fact that he was worried about his subconscious to refuse.

He put the pillows back in their position on the bed and climbed under the covers and Dany settled in. Jon turned off his lamp and waited for Dany to do the same, but was surprised when she leaned over and placed a chaste kiss on his cheek.

"Thank you," she told him, granting him a smile, before reaching over and turning off the lamp on her side. 

Jon was too dumbstruck to reply. Instead he lay still as a statue, staring at the ceiling until he heard Dany’s steady breathing as she fell asleep. It was then that a giddy smile spread on his face. Sure, she probably only felt gratitude and a friendship towards him… but that was enough for now.

*

Dany awoke extremely disoriented. She didn’t know where she was… and there was a banging that she couldn’t identify. After a few seconds, she stopped staring at the ceiling and looked around at the room she was in. It was then that she remembered she was in Jon’s room at Castle Black. The banging had apparently been someone knocking at the door, because it was now partially open, with Jon leaning out of the room talking to someone.

She pushed herself up in a sitting position and checked the alarm clock, groaning when she saw it was only half past six. Hopefully whatever was going on wasn’t a big deal so she could go back to sleep.

A moment later, Jon turned around and appeared surprised to see her awake. Smiling apologetically, he said, "Sorry I didn’t get that in before it woke you up. Unfortunately, I need you to get up anyway."

"At this hour?" she asked, in disbelief, "What kind of evil is out there this early? Most of the baddies are night owls."

Jon laughed as he pulled his uniform out of the closet, "It’s nothing like that. Sam just got off his shift and he told me that Davos just left for Driftmark a few minutes ago and left me a message that he wants you and I to meet him there to fill out paperwork at 0900 hours. That means we need to leave at about a quarter after seven to be sure we get there on time."

"Forty-five minutes?!"

"Yeah… and make sure you like how you do your hair and everything… because while we’re there, you might as well get your military ID."

Dany sighed loudly and got out of bed, throwing open Jon’s closet door and looking at the dresses Missandei had brought her. For something like this, she was definitely going for mature. Unfortunately, most of her clothes had a more ‘sexy’ emphasis. She barely heard Jon leave to go shower as she let out a whine and tried to figure out what to do.

*

"You look fine," Jon assured Dany as he started the truck’s engine.

"You’re just saying that because you don’t want me to hate you for hardly giving me any time to get ready," Dany argued, frowning at him before taking a mouthful of the donut Tormund had shoved in her hand, insisting that a pregnant woman couldn’t skip breakfast.  
"I swear, I am not. I would have never guessed that you’d been rushed for time if I didn’t know it," he replied, trying not to smile. She was the most beautiful girl in the world, how could she be so upset that she hadn’t had hours to primp?

"Isn’t Driftmark an Air Force Base?"

"Yes, but it doesn’t matter for stuff like this. We actually don’t need to fill out the paperwork here, but Colonel Davos probably wants to make sure you get your ID, so he’s dragging us out here. We can go on any kind of base in the U.S. Military, not just Marine ones."

"Hey, pretty cool," Dany replied, "I had a friend in high school whose cousin’s father was in the Air Force and she told us about tax-free shopping and stuff."

"Unfortunately since we don’t live near any non-secret military bases, you probably won’t have many chances to frequent base exchanges and commissary’s, but if you go near one, you can shop there."

"Cool."

Jon smiled again, this time amused by how quickly she’d forgotten her ‘trauma’ of the morning. He didn’t know how it was possible… but he found her more adorable every day.

*

"Ugh… I’m full," Dany moaned, rubbing her stomach. 

Everything had gone smoothly during their meeting with Colonel Davos, and Dany had been able to get her ID quickly, so as a sort of celebration, the two of them had stopped for lunch so they wouldn’t have to endure a bunch of young men arguing about the balanced diet of a pregnant woman.

"Hey, do you want me to take you to your friend, Jorah’, so you can talk to him?" Jon asked, "I was thinking it might help if he met me. I could stay out in my truck and wait if you want… and if things are going well enough, you can come get me. I know you two will probably want your privacy, so you won’t want me with you when you tell him the news."

"Actually, now that you mention it, I would love it if you came and talked to Jorah with me. I’d even like it if you were there when I told him more. I just know if he meets you, he’ll see what a great guy you are… and it’ll help with any reservations he’ll have about it," Dany replied, "But if you don’t want to, I totally understand. I mean, Jorah is really a dad to me… and I would imagine it would be kind of… nervousness-inducing for you."

"No, if you want me there, I am fine with it."

"Great," she grinned, "Oh, and this way, you can call from Jorah’s to call your family and not have to worry about anyone hearing."

Jon wanted to add that he would only be able to do that if Jorah didn’t throw them out after hearing they’d eloped, but Dany seemed so positive. Besides, Jon didn’t know the guy… maybe he really was better than her parents. Maybe he would accept what they’d done, just because he loved Dany. Well… one could hope.

*

"Just remember, whatever happens, I am here for you. You have my support," Jon said as he and Dany approached Jorah’ door.

Dany nodded, trying not to be nervous. She prayed things would go better than the last time she’d sprung big news on Jorah. Raising a shaking hand to the door, Dany knocked and waited for a response.

A moment later, Jorah opened the door and was visibly surprised to see her standing on the other side of the threshold, "Dany… you’re here."

"Yeah," she replied giving him a small smile, "We need to talk… about what happened, and… other stuff."

"Yes, I would have to agree," Jorah replied, stepping back, "Please come in."

"Oh, um, this is Jon Snow," Dany said, putting her hand on Jon’s arm.

"Jon," Jorah said, "Dany has told me a lot about you… and Missandei informed me that you were helping Dany. I want to thank you for that."

The two men shook hands and Jon nodded politely to the man, "Dany’s my friend… I like helping her."

"Missandei told you I was staying with Jon?" Dany asked, surprised. Missandei hadn’t told her that she’d told Jorah anything.

"Yes," Jorah answered, looking down, "Please don’t be angry with her, Dany… I felt very guilty for the things I said to you almost immediately after I said it. When I found out you were missing… I was overwrought. Missandei *had* to tell me."

"It’s okay," she said quietly, walking into the apartment.

Jon followed and Jorah shut the door before heading into the living room, "Would either of you care for tea?"

"No thank you, Sir," Jon said politely.

Dany shook her head and gave him a small smile, "I can’t."

"Ahh, yes… water or anything?"

"I think we’re fine," she told him, sitting down on the couch.

Jon sat beside her and by the way they were looking up at him, Jorah knew they had something to say. Judging by Dany’s track record, he decided it would probably be best if he sat down.

"I just want to tell you, Dany, that I am sorry about my… earlier reaction. I only want the best for you, but I didn’t mean to hurt you. I regret making you feel so alienated," Jorah said sincerely, "I want you to know that if this is what you want, I will stand by you and help you."

"Thank you," she replied, smiling at him as she reached over to the chair he was sitting in and squeezed his hand, "I hope you’re feeling just as supportive after I tell you… what I have to tell you."

Jorah’s heart began beating a mile a minute as he wondered what her news could possibly be. He noticed that she looked at Jon who nodded his head encouragingly. If she wasn’t already pregnant… he would have thought that the two of them were going to tell him she was having their baby.

"You must know that my uncle and I had a fight… and I couldn’t stay with him any more," Dany began, "Well, after what happened with you guys on Christmas, I didn’t feel I could come to you either. I tried to go to my dorm, but it was all locked up. That’s where I ran into Jon. I had already told him the news and he’d been understanding… and he let me stay with him."

When Dany paused, Jon thought she might like it if he let her take a break, "It didn’t solve all her problems, of course, because she still needed a permanent home, money… everything. I was just going to try and help her get a good paying job so she could get her own place… but she was going to have to drop out of school and I hated that. I think you would agree that Dany would have a hard life… always struggling… with a small child and no college degree."

"Yes, that is absolutely right," Jorah nodded. He wanted to add that he would happily fund her college education, but he thought it best not to interrupt. He could always offer after they were done telling him the news.

"Well, the other guys who live with me think that this is my baby. They found out Dany was pregnant and just assumed. We figured if they knew the truth, they might not be so understanding about her staying with us… so we let them believe it," Jon explained.

Dany nodded and picked it back up, "Well, you see, Jon’s not a normal college student. Remember those guys I told you about, all decked out in bacl uniform?"

"Yes," Jorah replied quietly, realizing what she was saying.

"The U.S. Military has a secret mission thing going on. Jon’s one of them," Dany informed him, then added quickly, "But he’s not evil!"

"No.. totally… the opposite of evil," Jon assured him.  
Jorah smiled, "Okay, that’s good to hear."

"Anyway, we’ll get back to that later," Dany said, "All the guys in Jon’s house are involved in the military, so it’s no big secret. One of them told Jon how if he were to marry me.. and make people think this is *his* baby… we would get an apartment of our own that they would pay the rent. I’d have health insurance… they’d even pay for me to go to college."

Jon nodded, "Plus, they would give me a cost of living raise because I’d have a wife and baby to support. It’s a lot nicer than most guys who aren’t working on secret projects get since they want us to keep our mouths shut… and it would pretty much take care of all our problems if we…"

For the first time, Jorah noticed the gold bands on their ring fingers and concluded, "You two got married."

Silent, the two of them simply nodded, waiting for his reaction. Dany prayed he would approve… she’d come to realize that Jorah was more of a father to her and she hated the idea of him being disappointed in her.

Jorah didn’t know what to say; he was in shock. Dany was *married*. The young girl was now someone’s wife. She was so very young… too young to take such a giant step. On the other hand, she was a lot more mature than most other eighteen-year-olds. He had to respect her decision. At least Jon didn’t seem to be of the bad sort. 

"Well, this is quite a surprise, to say the least," he remarked, "I… I understand why you did it, Daenerys. I wish there had been another option, though… you are both very young."

"I know," she nodded, "But it’s not a real marriage. I mean it’s legal and everything, but we both don’t have any ideas of this being a life-long union."

"We’re just doing it so Dany and the baby get taken care of. We’ve agreed that we’ll get a divorce in a year," Jon added.

Jorah nodded, still not loving what they had done… but he really didn’t want to argue with them. Not only did he not want to make Dany feel attacked, but logically, it was a good idea. One thing did bother him, though…

"Jon, may I ask, why did you agree to this?"

"Dany’s my friend and I care about her," Jon answered, "I know this is extreme, but I don’t think it will hurt me. I do enjoy living with all my friends, but there have been many occasions where I have wished I had a little more privacy. Now I can still go to their parties, but when I am trying to study or get some sleep, those parties won’t bother me. Plus, I get an apartment without paying rent."

"And he can still date… he just has to be very discreet about it," Dany said.

"I would imagine it would have to take a woman with a lot of understanding to not mind her boyfriend being married to someone else… and willing to keep their relationship a secret," Jorah pointed out.

Jon smiled, "I know what you’re saying… I’m sure I can hold off on dating for a year."

Jorah raised an eyebrow skeptically before he realized the truth- Jon didn’t have a *need* to date and attempt to get laid as much as possible, which was normal for a fraternity boy, from what he’d heard. He thought that just maybe the real reason was that he had feelings for Dany. A part of Jorah was happy knowing that there was a young man who appeared to be upstanding that cared for his friend… on the other hand… Jon was just asking for a broken heart. Dany appeared to be oblivious to Jon’s affection for her, at least to the fact that it was more than just platonic. Then again, perhaps she felt something for him as well… or could learn to. A lot could happen in a year.

They made conversation for a few more moments, answering Jorah’ questions about their plans, trying to assure him they had thought things through and not just jumped into marriage. Jorah found that as the minutes passed and the shock wore off, the whole situation seemed less… horrible.

Dany smiled, really smiled, relieved because she knew she had Jorah back. He wasn’t crazy about what they’d done, but he accepted it… and that’s all she’d wanted from him. It was then that she remembered Jon’s family. That would be a whole other story. Jorah was *her* loved one… and she was screwed up no matter what. But Jon’s loved ones had to accept the fact that him, who had done everything right, had just screwed his life up for no reason other than her. It would be a completely different deal… and the odds of her accepting it with the relative ease that Jorah had weren’t great.

"Jorah, Jon still hasn’t told his parents… he’d call from Castle Black, but there’s a chance they’ll listen in on his call… and we can’t take that chance. So, he’ll call from here, using my cellphone.” 

"Okay," Jorah replied, gesturing his desk so Jon could have more privacy, "Feel free."

"Thank you," Jon smiled.

Jorah smiled and nodded at him while Dany gave him a squeeze on the arm, as if to thank him for helping her out yet again. Jon took a deep breath and walked over on the phone, grateful that at least he didn’t have to *face* his parents when he dropped the bombshell on them.

"The two of you didn’t tell anyone about this beforehand?" Jorah inquired, wondering how they had pulled it off… and so swiftly. It had been just over a week since Dany had moved in with Jon.

"Well, the guys in Jon’s house knew… they actually set us up with a hotel and wedding ceremony in Oldtown. We left Monday morning, got married that night, and came back yesterday," Dany explained. "I did tell Missandei and Grey first."

"I see," Jorah said quietly, feeling rather hurt that she hadn’t felt the need to share something so important with him.

"Please don’t be hurt… I didn’t tell you because I care about you so much. I figured if I told you and you didn’t approve… it would be even worse for me to do this. It would be going against your wishes, and if I didn’t know what your wishes were… it wasn’t as bad. That’s the same reason Jon didn’t tell his parents yet."

Jorah smiled and shook his head at their reasoning… which *was* devious… but rather ingenious at the same time. Then again, he really shouldn’t be surprised, his Daenerys was always doing things like that. *His* Dany… Jorah was so pleased things were good between the both of them again. 

Dany glanced up and saw that Jon was talking… and didn’t look too strained. Of course, he’d probably just gotten his mother on the phone and hadn’t had a chance to tell her yet. A feeling of nervousness grew in her stomach, almost as bad as the one she’d felt before telling Jorah. Waiting while Jon talked was killing her… so when Jorah asked her if she wanted to join him in the kitchen while he made himself tea so that Jon could have privacy, she jumped at the chance for a distraction.

*

"Hello?"

"Hi, Aunt Cat."

Catelyn Stark grinned widely as she heard her nephew’s voice on the other end of the phone, "Jon, it’s so good to hear from you. How’s everything going, Sweetling?"

"Good," he answered, swallowing deeply. That wasn’t really a lie… things weren’t bad to *him*. "I just had something I needed to tell you."

"Oh God… is everything okay?" she asked, knowing she really shouldn’t jump to conclusions. It was hard having a him so far away, though.

"Yes," Jon replied, not feeling bad that he was sort of lying. He wasn’t dying or ill or anything along the lines of what his mother was assuming. "I just have something very important to tell you, and I would like you to sit down."

Aunt Cat moaned, but sat in a chair at the kitchen table as Jon had suggested. "What is it, Jon?"

Taking a deep breath, he said, "Well, you remember that girl, Dany, I told you about? I lied about her just being a friend. We dated a few times."

"Honey, if you think the fact that you lied about dating a girl is going to shock me that much, you couldn’t be more wrong! I didn’t believe for a minute that you had no romantic notions towards her."  
"That’s not the news," Jon sighed, "The reason I lied is that we only went on a few dates and the day I left for Winterfell, she told me we couldn’t see each other anymore because she found out she was pregnant with her ex-boyfriend’s baby."

"Oh…"

"Listen aunt, don’t think bad things about her. You know very well that just because a girl isn’t married and sleeps with a guy it doesn’t make her a bad person," Jon said, knowing that he really didn’t need to defend Dany… his aunt preached abstinence before marriage, but she didn’t hate people who didn’t.

"Okay, she made a mistake," Aunt Cat conceded, wondering where this was going.

"Yeah, she did. Anyway, she told me about the baby and that we couldn’t see each other, and I agreed. I didn’t tell you because I didn’t think it would ever matter, but I didn’t want to have to explain the whole story to you. Well, when I came back, I ran into her… Aunt Cat, she was thrown out of her own home by her family and the guy who got her pregnant had told her he wanted no involvement. She had no place to go."

"Oh, that’s terrible!" Aunt Cat cried, her heart already going out to the girl.

Jon grinned; she was reacting just as he wanted her to. Luckily Dany couldn’t hear him or she’d freak out. "You always taught me to help someone in need… especially a woman… so I brought her home with me. I was a gentleman, of course, made her sleep in my bed while I slept on the floor."

"Good boy."

"All the guys who live with me found out that she was pregnant right away, though… because she gets sick in the mornings," Jon continued, "And they assumed I was the father of her baby."

"Oh dear."

"Yeah… and I was worried that if I told them the truth, they wouldn’t be cool with her staying with us… I couldn’t let her get thrown out of yet another home. So I didn’t deny it. Then someone told me about something that would solve all her problems. You see, Dany had a place to stay with me for a while… but she needed a real home. Plus, she doesn’t have a job, so she had no money and babies need that, of course. She’s also a really smart girl and she was going to have to drop out of college."

Aunt Cat sighed sadly, "How horrible!"

"I know… but someone told me about a way that Dany would get an apartment rent free… she’d get some support money… she’d even get a scholarship to pay for her tuition and books," Jon said, closing his eyes and biting the bullet. "The military would pay for all that… if she married me and I said that this was my baby. So we did it."

"What?!"

"We drove to Oldtown and got married," Jon explained. "Please don’t hate me, Aunt Cat"

She was quiet for a moment, getting her thoughts together, "I don’t hate you… I just can’t believe you did this!"

"I know it’s not at all what you had planned for me, but Dany needed my help. It’s not a real marriage. We’re not in love, we’re not going to share a bed… we’re getting divorced in a year. So I know I’m doing two things you are against- not getting married in a church with no family present and getting a divorce… but I’m doing it so that Dany has a chance to have a life that’s not incredibly hard… and so her baby… *innocent* baby will be able to have more."

"I know… I’m just in shock, Jon," Aunt Cat replied numbly.

"I hate to drop a bombshell like this on you, but I couldn’t very well not tell you. I know you don’t like this… I just don’t want you to hold it against me."

"You’re family and I love you… I don’t know what to say at this very moment… I need time to think."

"Okay… I am calling you from Dany’s cellphone because the phones at home could possibly be bugged and I can get in major trouble for this if the truth comes out. Would you like me to call you back sometime soon?"

"Yes," she replied, "I need to sit your uncle down and tell him… and we both need to absorb and process this. Why don’t you call us tomorrow night?"

"I’ll do that… I love you, Aunt Cat."

"I love you too, Jon," she responded, then realized something, "Wait a second! Why didn’t you tell me *before* you eloped? You just didn’t want to give me a chance to tell you no, didn’t you?"

Jon smiled; he was caught. "You know me so well."

"You little brat!"

*

"So, do you really think she took it well, or did you just say that for my benefit? I need the truth," Dany said as she and Jon walked back to his truck after leaving Jorah’s. She felt a lot better knowing things were okay with Jorah again, but she still worried about Jon’s uncle and aunt. Even if she didn’t know them or have to deal with them… if they were mad at their son it would be because of her and she couldn’t bear that.

"I honestly think that for the news she had to handle… she had a very positive reaction," Jon answered, opening the passenger side door for her. "She told me she needs time to let this soak in, but I think the fact that she didn’t scream at me and demand I get an annulment or anything was very good."

"What about your uncle?" Dany asked as she climbed into the passenger seat.

"I’m not sure when it comes to him, he tends to be unpredictable. On one hand, he may be upset because we’re being dishonest and we got married for all the wrong reasons and I’m getting divorced. Those are three things I was raised not to do. On the other… we did all those things for a very good reason, so he might be fine with it," he replied, "I just have to wait and see. I’ll call them back tomorrow."

Dany sighed worriedly as Jon shut her door and walked around to his side. She really should have considered this before she’d agreed to marry him. She’d just been so focused on herself… Dany had never felt as selfish as she did then.

Jon started the car and smiled at Dany, trying to get her to stop worrying. He knew that even if his father had the worst possible reaction, things would work out. He might be mad at Jon for a while, but he’d get over it. Jon could tell by talking to his Aunt Cat wouldn’t let this destroy their family.

"I just want you to know that if he doesn’t approve… we’ll get this annulled," Dany said quietly as Jon started driving them home.

Jon sighed, "Dany, I don’t want that."

"I do," she said firmly, "I can do it. You can contest it, but I can file for one and tell everyone I’ve discovered you're not the father of my baby. Once they know that, it’ll defeat the purpose of us getting married anyway."

Knowing there was no arguing with her, at least not then. If his uncle did throw a fit… maybe he could keep it from Dany. There was no way he’d let her ruin everything. Not after all they had been through.


	21. Of friends and friendships

Dany sighed and turned off the TV, giving up on attempting to pay attention to the ‘Friends’ rerun. It had only been twenty minutes since Jon had left to go on watch and she was already climbing the walls. Meanwhile she had a long night ahead of her. Dany supposed she could go downstairs and hang out with the guys, but they would unintentionally make her uncomfortable by fussing over her to make sure she was comfortable and not hungry or cold or anything. If they’d just relax and not treat her like she was the baby, she wouldn’t mind so much.

Getting an idea, Dany and dialed Missandei’s phone. They’d hardly had a chance to talk since going back home for winter break and Dany wondered how Missandei was faring with her mother.  
On the third ring, Missandei picked up the phone, "Hello!"

"Hi, Missandei!"

"Back from Oldtown?"

"Yeah," she replied, "We got back yesterday evening. Sorry I didn’t call you then, but we were exhausted… and I had to get up at the crack of dawn today to go to an Air Force base with Jon so we could sign paperwork and get my military ID."

"It’s okay, I understand," Missandei said, "Wow, you’re a married woman now."

"Yup," Dany remembered what Jon had said about the house being bugged and conversations possibly being listened in on and realized she shouldn’t take any chances. "Hey, you know how I hate talking on the phone?"

Missandei frowned, wondering what Dany was talking about. As far as she could tell, Dany adored the phone. They spent many hours on the phone with each other on boring weeknights throughout high school. Then it hit her that Dany was hinting at something… and she’d better play along. "Of course I know that… did you want to talk in person?"

Dany smiled, silently cheering for Missandei, "That would be great. Jon’s out so I am all alone and kind of bored. Want to hang out?"

*

Dany gave herself the once-over in the mirror and decided she was satisfied with her appearance. After all, just because she was married- with the wedding ring on, of course, so that none of the guys could notice anything amiss- and pregnant didn’t mean she shouldn’t be attractive. She was young, and tonight she was partying with her friends.

Grabbing her purse and jacket, Dany opened the door and walked out into the deserted hall of Castle Black. Most of the occupants were gone- either watchling, partying or hanging out at the few other spots King’s Landing offered for fun on a Thursday night. She made her way down the stairs so that she could wait on the porch for Grey, who was driving over to pick her up so that they could meet Missandei at the coffee shop…

"Hey now, looking good!" Tormund grinned, looking Dany up and down in her red leather pants and black halter top as he stood at the foot of the stairs, "You going out?"

"Thank you," she smiled as she continued down the steps, then replied, "Yeah, I’m hanging out with a couple of my friends tonight. One of them is picking me up any minute now."

"Good, because if I let you walk anywhere, Jon would have my ass in a sling."

"Speaking of, if he gets back before me, would you let Jon know I’m at the coffee shop downtown?" she asked.  
"Sure… how late are you planning on being?"

"Not very… I just have no idea when Jon will be back and if he comes home and can’t find me… he’ll freak."

Tormund nodded and began walking past her, up the stairs, "I’ll be sure to let him know. Have fun… and remember you’re married."

Dany laughed at his teasing and waved before walking towards the door. As much as she was looking forward to moving into an apartment… she’d miss the guys.

Grey pulled up right as she opened the front door so she rushed to go get in his car, eager to have a night with her friends. She *so* needed to get her mind off things for a little while, or else risk going insane from worry and guilt.

*  
Grey her decaf cup before sitting down at the table with them. 

"Thanks, Grey," Dany said as she smiled gratefully at him, which made Grey wonder if she was thanking him for the water or for coming back.

"No problemo," he replied, "So you guys are getting your own place, huh?"

Dany nodded, "Yeah, this morning I had to go meet this Colonel with Jon and we filled out a bunch of paperwork about us being married. They have to send it to their headquarters and someone has to approve it or whatever. I’m looking forward to it. The guys are all really nice but things are kind of cramped."

Dany patted his hand affectionately, "You can come visit me."

"Dany!" Missandei squealed as she rushed over to their table and pulled her friend into a tight embrace. She pulled back and looked closely at the and shook her head.

"What?" Dany asked as Missandei took the seat beside her at the table, after leaning in to give her boyfriend a kiss..

"I just thought you would maybe look different."

"Pregnant different or married different?"

"Either." Missandei said, "So Dany, tell us all about Oldtown."

Dany told then all about everything she and Jon had seen, their wedding, and the big jackpot they had won. She realized how much she’d missed her friends and was so happy that she hadn’t lost them…. she was definitely going to need them around for the next seven and a half months.  
Before they knew it, it was ten o’clock, not extremely late… but since Dany had gotten up so early after not enough sleep, plus she was more tired these days due to her condition… it was well past her bedtime. By the time she walked through the door of Castle Black after Grey and Missandei had dropped her off, Dany was yawning continually and wanted nothing more than to crawl up the stairs and collapse on top of the bed without bothering to take off her clothes.

As soon as she had the door closed behind her, though, Jon walked up to her. She realized he must have been sitting in the front room of the house, all alone in front of the fire.

"Hi Dany, did you have fun?"

"Yeah," she replied slowly, looking at him strangely, "Were you waiting up for me?"

"No… no… I just got home a little while ago and was sitting here… thinking. I have a lot to think about, you know."

Dany nodded, "Yeah, I can relate."

"Tormund said you went out with your friends… which I was happy to hear, because I think that’s good for you," he told her, "I just was worried… well… were you careful?"

Dany patted his arm affectionately, "Grey drove me to and from, so there was no walking in the night time for this girl. Not a bit!"

Jon smiled down at her, "I hope you don’t think I’m suffocating you. I’m not trying to… it’s just that you know I care about you and I worry. Dragonstone is far from a safe little town where you can walk freely at night.”

"I know what you mean," she assured him, "Trust me, if I thought you were being controlling-guy, I would not like it, and I would make it clear to you how much I didn’t like it."  
Jon smiled and jerked his head towards the stairs, "Want to hit the sack?"

Dany sighed and nodded, "More than anything I have ever wanted in my entire life. I’m completely sleep-deprived."

"Oh, just wait until you have the baby," Jon smiled, "You’ll get this lovely glazed-over look in his eyes that screams ‘new mother’."

"Boy, I certainly can’t wait for that."

"Yeah… plus, your clothes will most likely never match, and even if they do, they’ll be stained with all sorts of food and bodily fluids. And your hair… we won’t even get into that."

Dany wrinkled her nose, "Stop wigging me out, Man!"

"Sorry," he laughed as he opened the bedroom door and watched her walk into his room. He was so much happier now than he had been five minutes earlier, just because she was home and she was near him. The presence of Dany could make him feel more alive than anything else in his entire life. Just being in the same room with her, hearing her voice, seeing her smile… Jon’s skin tingled and he felt… different. His wife was a remarkable woman. His *wife*.

Dany was carrying her nightshirt, intent on changing in the bathroom so she could wash her face when she saw Jon standing in the doorway with a goofy grin on his face.

"What?"

Jon shrugged, making himself stop looking like an idiot, "I’m just… happy to be getting to bed."

Dany raised her eyebrows as she walked out of the room. She wished she could appreciate the simple things in life as much as Jon if he got that happy about going to bed.

Jon quickly changed and climbed into bed to wait for Dany, an idea forming in his mind. He knew now that it was pointless to deny feeling nothing more than friendship and a desire to help her. He was dangerously close to being in love with Dany, and he didn’t know if he could stop himself… or even if he wanted to. Jon decided to change strategy… he wouldn’t ignore his feelings any longer. He wasn’t going to declare his feelings to Dany and risk freaking her out, but he was going to have hopes for the both of them to stay married after the year. He didn’t want her to be his wife only in name and he had twelve months to get his way.


	22. Of phone calls

Jorah said as he got up and walked into the kitchen. "Now that we have that out of the way… I went and picked up a little wedding gift for you two."

Dany perked up, "You did? I happen to love presents."

"I’m aware," he replied, coming back out with a wrapped gift in his hands.

Jon could help but laugh at the way Dany practically bounced in her chair with anticipation. Jorah handed her the present and sat back down on the couch to watch her open the gift while trying not to rip the paper. She eventually got it unwrapped to reveal a toaster.

"A toaster!" she exclaimed, grinning widely as she held it up for Jon to see.

"I know it’s not the most exciting gift, but you will need one and it does seem suitable as a wedding gift."

"It’s our own toaster… I think that’s kind of exciting," Dany answered.

Jon nodded in agreement, "Thank you very much."

"Yes, thanks Jorah! You’re so sweet," Dany gushed, reaching over to hug her friend.

"If it’s okay, I’m going to call my family now," Jon said.

"I hope they’ll be okay with it," Dany said.

Jon smiled reassuringly, "Luckily they probably got done eating about half an hour ago and when they’re full, they’re a lot less likely to get infuriated, so I have that working in my favor."

Inwardly, he was praying that they’d approve, especially now that he’d decided he wanted a real life with Dany. It was one thing if they were angry with a decision he’d made, but after a year it would be like it never happened… but if things went like he hoped with Dany, she would be his wife for the rest of his life and it would break his heart if his parents wouldn’t accept her.  
Jorah gave him a sympathetic smile, then asked Dany, "How do cookies sound?"

"Delicious."

"Why don’t we go into the kitchen and arrange a tray so that Jon can have some privacy."

Dany was down with giving Jon privacy and she had a major sweet tooth going right then, so whatever Jorah wanted was fine with her.

Jon watched gratefully as the two of them headed into the small kitchen and left him alone. Willing his fingers not to shake, he dialed all the numbers required. He tried to remind himself that the hardest part was over. He’d already told them what he’d done… all he had to do now was listen.

When Aunt Cat picked up after the first ring, Jon took a deep breath and prepared himself.

"Hi Aunt Cat," he said quietly, ready to judge by the tone of her voice where he stood with his them.

"Don’t sound like you ran over the family dog!"

"Sorry, aunt."

Aunt Cat chuckled, "You’re family. No matter how we feel about what you’ve done, nothing will change that."

"How do you feel?"

"Well your uncle and I sat down and discussed it. At first we were rather torn. On one hand, this is being dishonest not only to the military, but to the Gods. Marriage is a holy sacrament, not something to be used to get what one wants, and not to be taken lightly. And we don’t believe in divorce. On the other hand, the part that had us torn was that we were so amused by what you had done and knew we shouldn’t be. It’s just that you took what we had taught you so that you would grow up to be a good man and gone and done something completely outrageous! Jon, when I told you that you always helped a woman in need, I meant you should change her tire or protect her if she was, say, being hit by another man. I never meant for you to go this far," Aunt Cat told him, then laughed, "We still can’t believe you did it!"

"Uh, aunt Cat, are you hysterical?"

Aunt Cat laughed harder, "No, I’m fine. I just find it incredibly ironic that you actually did do what we said you ought to do… even though by doing it you did a lot of things we taught you to never do. After I told your uncle and we calmed down and just let it all sink in, we actually laughed until we cried."

"Dad laughed?"

"Yes… don’t worry, Jon, he took it very well, I think. You have the closest thing to our approval that you’re going to get."

Jon’s eyebrows furrowed, "What do you mean?"

"Well, we aren’t saying that this is the best thing you have ever done and we’d have done the same in your shoes. We don’t know that we wouldn’t have, but since this does go against some of our beliefs we would be hypocrites if we said that. However, it was your decision and you’re an adult, so we respect that. We trust that you know what you are doing and we’re also proud of you. I think it’s very sweet of you to help out that poor girl. Too bad there aren’t more boys like you out there and less boys like the one that… got her into trouble."

"Well, to be fair, I don’t know if I would have gone this far for any girl. She’s very special," Jon said.

"I can tell that she must be quite remarkable," Aunt Cat agreed, "I also am supposed to tell you that your father and I made another decision regarding this situation. Even though this is not a real marriage, since we are proud of you… and we do feel bad for this girl… we wanted to do something to help the both of you out. So, we figure you are going to need to furnish this new apartment the two of you are getting and we’re sending you money that should cover the bulk of the cost for furniture."

"You don’t have to, Aunt Cat…"

"I know we don’t, but we want to and you know that it’s no problem for us. You also know how happy it makes us to help out. Plus, it won’t cover everything so now you can still buy some of it on your own and be proud."

"Okay," he sighed, "Thank you very much."

"You’re very welcome," she replied happily, "I transferred the money to your account half an hour ago and e-mailed you with a list of everything you two are going to need from couches and lamps to sheets and towels. Now, the money I sent probably won’t cover a crib and all the other furnishings for a baby, because I think it would be bad luck."

"Bad luck?"

"Yes, I am presuming she’s not all that far along and I have always considered it bad luck to buy anything for the baby until the second trimester. You know, she might…" she paused, then continued in a low voice, as if she said it too loud, it would happen, "lose it."

"I see," Jon replied, thinking she was being ridiculous, but knowing how his aunt was when it came to her superstitions.

"How far along is she, anyway?"

Jon did some quick math in his head from what Dany had told him and said, "About a month and a half, I think."

"Good, that will give me some time so I can make a list of all the things for her. Babies need so much and a new mother usually can’t even think of half of it on her own. She doesn’t have a good relationship with her family?"

"Her parents died when she was a kid and she was raised by an uncle. And he’s not supporting her decision to keep the baby. Hopefully that will change, though. I mean, I know how you and Dad are with Robb’s kids and I think once her uncle sees his grandchild he’ll change her mind."

"I think you’re right, but I hope it doesn’t take that long. Trust me, Jon, being pregnant is scary for any woman. Your body isn’t acting like it’s yours anymore and there are so many strange things happening. To be a teenage girl and without any reassurance from someone who has been there is doubly frightening."

"I agree… but I don’t think I should push her to do it right now. She’s still pretty… fragile. The way her uncle treated her… think worse case scenario, Mom."

"Poor thing," Aunt Cat sighed.

"Yeah… but she’s tough. She’s dealing with it and trying to be strong despite. I just don’t want her to have to go through the same pain all over again. Especially not so soon after. Maybe if we give him enough time to cool off and accept the idea, he’ll be more understanding. I want to at least get all settled into the apartment before I even consider talking to Dany about it."

"That sounds good. If Dany can tell her that she’s got her own apartment and the means to raise this baby, I bet it will help him accept her decision," she said, "In the meantime, I’ll make this list for her and send it in a couple of months. I can send her money for the baby too!"

"I don’t know about that… I have a feeling she’s going to need persuading for this money… let’s see how that goes first."

"Make sure she knows that the money is nothing. We have plenty and it makes us happy to help others with it."

"Yeah, but that’s the problem. She doesn’t like needing help. Dany’s pretty good at taking care of herself."

"She sounds like I would really like her," Aunt Cat commented, shamelessly fishing.

"You’d adore her," Jon sighed, wanting to add that if things went well, she may have the chance to see how much she could adore Dany when she truly became her in-law.

Aunt Cat grinned, knowing her nephew wasn’t just married to a friend. There was something very big going on and she intended to get to the bottom of it, no matter how much manipulating she had to do.

"For the first time in two weeks, I am completely stress-free," Dany sighed, laying back on Jon’s bed as he sat down at his desk and turned on his Mac. "I know that we have a ton of stuff to do… getting everything for the apartment… moving into the apartment… I have to get a job… I have another semester of school coming up… and there’s the whole thing about someone growing inside me for months and months… but I feel like I can handle it all. I have Jorah and Grey and Missandei. I have you… and your family is cool with it!"

"Yeah, about that… there’s something I need to tell you," Jon said.

Dany lifted her head and gave him a concerned look, "They weren’t as cool with it as you said?"

"Oh, they were… they actually found it kind of funny the way I… interpreted their moral lessons," he replied, "In fact, they are so cool with it that they wanted to help us out. They’re proud of me and they sympathize with you… so they decided to give us a wedding gift. My mom transferred money today that will pay for furniture."

Dany sat up abruptly, "Tell me you are kidding!"

"I’m kidding… only I’m not. Don’t freak out, okay? I know you think it’s too much and you don’t like people helping you, but it’s not a big deal to them. My uncle and aunt are very comfortable, so for them to send money is not a big deal to them. It’ll make them so happy if they can know they’ve helped."

"I’m not a charity case! Okay, maybe I was, but since you married me, it’s gotten me to a place where I can help myself and I don’t need pity!"

Jon rubbed his forehead tiredly, "Please, Dany… I knew you wouldn’t like this, but I swear it will make them happy and they do not think of you as some charity case. My aunt actually commented on how much spirit you have and she knows that you’re strong and smart and independent. She admires that very much. You two would get along great because you have a lot in common, only you two have opposing views on the topic of her wanting to give you a present and if you insist on refusing it then there is a whole big mess that I am in the middle of so could you please just accept this and not think of it as a pity gift for my sake?"

Dany bit her bottom lip and nodded. She’d have to swallow her pride, but this honestly appeared to be something that was causing Jon grief and she’d already done enough of that. She just hoped he was telling the truth because even though she’d probably never meet them, Dany couldn’t bear the thought of them pitying her. They had raised Jon and he was a great guy, so they had to be great too. Besides, a little part of her wished that she would meet them, like a normal girl would meet her in-laws. As soon as the thought came to her, she brushed it off. Jon was doing her a favor, plain and simple. If she let herself have girlish fantasies, she’d only ending up royally screwing things up!

Jon wearily made his way into the dark bedroom, trying to get to his dresser without killing himself by tripping over any of the bags or boxes of dishes, towels, bedding and various other items that were set wherever there had been a free space until they could move into their apartment. As much as he was looking forward to getting his own place with Dany, where they could be alone… and live in rooms where they could move about freely, he was dreading the big move the next day. He was already exhausted, every muscle in his body aching… and he had a day of lugging around furniture, mattresses and everything else to look forward to. He couldn’t imagine how dead he was going to feel in twenty-four hours if he felt this bad after week and a half of shopping with Dany to get everything they’d need.

Colonel Davos had surprised him by calling in favors so the paperwork went through swiftly, giving the two of them a not much time to purchase all the furniture and supplies they’d need for their own place before they moved in. Luckily they had been able to find things that they liked that were either in stock or able to be delivered quickly, so they would have it all in time. It had been stressful and tiring, but they were getting the space and privacy they so severely needed.

Quietly, he pulled out his pajamas and carefully headed back towards the bedroom door to go change in the bathroom. That was another thing Jon would like- changing in his bedroom. It was pretty late and Dany had given him every reason to believe she was sound asleep, but he didn’t want to take the chance of really embarrassing the both of them.

As Jon stood in the bathroom and pulled off his watch uniform and pulled on his t-shirt and drawstring pants, he marvelled at the fact that they hadn’t been caught. With all the guys wandering around, he would have figured that one of them would have noticed that he always came and changed into his pajamas in the bathroom. Although one time Pyp had seen him come change in the bathroom and had asked if he was just trying not to wake Dany. Jon had nodded, glad to have a great excuse and prepared to use it again. Luckily he had been on watches nearly every night to make up for the nights he missed while they were out of town, so it was an excuse he’d be able to use a lot of times. Otherwise… he was careful.

Changed and eager to collapse under the covers of his bed, Jon headed back down the hallway to his room, realizing this would be his last night in Castle Black, at least for a year. He hadn’t really thought about if he would move back after they got divorced….

Jon shook the negative thoughts from his head and reminded himself that he was supposed to be positive and if all went well, there would be no divorce. He opened the bedroom door and smiled as he imagined his life in a year if he got his way. He’d be with Dany, his wife, and they’d have a little baby. It would be everything he could ever want.

Silently, he slipped into the room and climbed onto the bed next to Dany, a skill he’d mastered in the past two weeks. When she rolled from on her side to on her back, he held his breath, hoping he hadn’t woken her. A moment later, though, he heard her sigh and knew she was still asleep. Jon closed his eyes and let himself get comfortable so that he’d get enough sleep for what was sure to be a long day.

He had just started to relax when he heard Dany quietly murmur, "That’s not funny!"

Opening his eyes, he tried to figure out what she was talking about before realizing she was still asleep. A smile tugged at the corners of his mouth as he pushed himself up so he could see her face as she frowned and shook her head. A moment later she rolled to the opposite side from the one she had previously been on, this time facing him.

Jon settled back down and forgot about going back to sleep, instead content to watch her as she smiled happily. He began wondering what she was dreaming about that so obviously pleased her. Was it maybe holding her baby for the first time? Maybe playing with her child when he or she was older. Or perhaps it wasn’t about her child at all. It could be about Drogo… would she have happy dreams about him? Jon had no idea. He realized he didn’t know all that much about what Dany would dream of. He just knew that she wanted to give her baby the best. She wanted a home and all the other normal stuff, as any sane person would. He also wasn’t completely clear on her feelings about Drogo. There was almost definitely some anger there… completely understandable anger since he’d made her a single mother. However, he really didn’t know where Dany stood when it came to her ex.

Jon wasn’t even sure where he stood. There was a bit of animosity, of course, since he was the ex-boyfriend of the woman Jon really, really liked, so that sort of went along with the territory. As far as Drogo’s decision not to be involved in the baby’s life, Jon couldn’t understand someone so selfish. They could have made it work. Especially when Dany told Drogo she wouldn’t have an abortion, Drogo could have opted to try being a family with her. Jon wasn’t sure if that made him a man or more of a weasel than himself, but he doubted he could have done it had he been in Drogo’s place.

How could anyone walk away from her?

With that thought, Jon closed his eyes and drifted to sleep, happily dreaming of a future with himself, Dany, her unborn child… and the other children they could create together in the years to come.


	23. Of moving

"Dany, Dany, Dany!" Tormund said loudly as he rushed over and grabbed the box away from her.

Dany rolled her eyes and put her hands on her hips, "That hardly weighs anything, why can’t I carry it?"

"You’re pregnant," he shouted as he walked away from her towards the apartment.

Dany shook her head in dismay and turned back to the truck, trying to find something she could get away with carrying inside. Just because she was pregnant did not make her completely useless and they were driving her insane by not letting her help with the move at all.

"You know, Dany, it would be really great if you could just go into the apartment and tell the guys where to put stuff," Sam suggested as he lugged one of the dining room chairs down the path.

Dany followed, since she had no better ideas. She could see no reason why they wouldn’t let her tell them where to put stuff, since she couldn’t strain anything other than her vocal cords doing that. 

Jon followed behind her with another of the chairs, grateful that Sam had thought of something for her to do before she’d had a fit. He knew that she was independent and liked being treated that way, but she really wasn’t in any condition to be lugging around furniture.

Upon entering the apartment, he saw that Dany had already taken command, telling the guys where exactly she wanted this or that piece of furniture. When they had come to sign the papers for the lease the previous week, the manager had taken them on a tour of the apartment and they’d had a discussion on how they had wanted to do the living room, so Dany was able to direct them on how to position the furniture.

Grinning, Jon set the chair down in the area for the dining room and turned to Samwell, "Thank you."

Sam shrugged, "I figured we didn’t want to have to face the wrath of Dany if we treated her like some weak female. She has a purpose and she’s happy now."

Jon nodded, "And do you notice how all of them obey her every command? I’ve lived with you all for a long time and I thought I knew you… I never figured you’d all go so… crazy for one girl."

"She’s special," Sam replied before leaving Jon standing alone.

He was right; Dany was very special.

"You know, your aunt was so right about the daybed," Dany said as she buzzed past Jon in the kitchen to pull her new sheets out of the dryer in the little laundry room that was much more like a closet.

Jon glanced at her back, "What was she right about?"

"She’s the one who suggested I get a daybed, remember?"

"No," he replied.

"Well she did. On that list she emailed, she said that a daybed would be good because it’s compact, so I can fit the crib and everything else for the baby in better. She also said something about it being good as a guest bed because it looks like a couch with throw pillows and won’t be weird in a baby room. I didn’t really get that, but I like the bed and it is smaller than my old one, so I think it’ll work."

Jon flushed as he remembered exactly what Aunt Cat had written. Dany didn’t know her, so she hadn’t realized that the woman was dropping very obvious hints that she thought the only thing wrong with their marriage was that it was fake.

"Oh yeah, she just meant it would work well as a guest bed… so in case people drop by for dinner or something, we have a good cover for why there’s a regular bed in the baby’s room," he covered.

Dany nodded her head as turned and stood in the doorway to the kitchen, "Your aunt is very smart."

"You could say that," he replied quietly before returning to putting the plates in the cabinet.

Dany walked into her room and began putting the sheets on her own bed before adding, "You know, whenever I had thought about getting married and stuff… I’d wondered what kind of relationship I’d have with my in-laws. There’s the mother-in-law’s from Hell. Anyway, I was just thinking that your aunt is the kind I would want… you know, for a regular marriage. She’s so sweet and… well, motherly."

Jon smiled and left the kitchen to go stand in her doorway, "She’d really like you too. You’d definitely be the kind of daughter-in-law she’d want."

"I don’t know why I even worry about it," Dany sighed, "I’ll be lucky to find a guy who treats me well and loves my kid; liking his mom will be the least of my worries."

Jon wanted to tell her that she’d found that guy. He would do anything for her and her child. He had a mother who would be exactly what Dany wanted and needed. He could be her husband for the rest of her life and give her a happily ever after.

But he couldn’t. He had to bide his time and develop a relationship with Dany that would hopefully result in her falling in love with him. If he declared his feelings for her now, she’d freak out and he’d probably lose her forever.

Sighing, he said, "I wish you wouldn’t be so stubborn and let me take this room. You’re going to have to share with the baby, you need the bigger room."

Dany shook her head resolutely, "This room is fine. I already told you, letting you have the master bedroom makes me feel better. This way I feel like I’m not completely making you suffer. Besides, what would the guys have said if I had directed all ‘our’ furniture to the small bedroom? This is for sure the inconspicuous way to go."

"I still don’t like it," he told her before turning back around to complete his task.

Dany stopped shoving pillows into the pillowcases and stopped to look at the spot he’d been standing in. She never should have said what she did about his aunt. It made her look and feel like a total idiot. Who knew what Jon was thinking now! He was either wondering what he’s gotten himself into or pitying her. She didn’t know which was worse.

"We’ll have to go to the grocery store tomorrow," Jon said, "I figure we should both go to make sure we get everything we need."

"Yeah, that’s a good idea," she replied.

"When’s your doctor’s appointment?" he asked, remembering that she’d mentioned choosing a doctor from the list the military had provided her upon her health insurance being implemented and having her first appointment that week.

"Tuesday at three," she told him as she walked into the living room to find the rest of her bedding. The guys had been so helpful that all there was left to do was put away the stuff in the kitchen, make their beds and put away their clothes.. All the furniture was in its place, and the guys had even gotten everything set up in the bathrooms.

"Oh no, I am supposed to go to a meeting Tuesday at three," Jon said, coming out of the kitchen to face her, "I can drop you off if you don’t mind getting there early, but the meeting should go for several hours."

"That’s okay," she replied, "I’m going to have to fill out paperwork so I need to get there early and I can find a ride home or just walk. It’s not that far."

"Dany, I don’t want you walking home," he argued.

Dany put her hand up, making him stop, "I’m almost two months pregnant… not nine. I can walk. Walking is good for me. Don’t forget I go jogging and that is an approved workout for mothers-to-be."

Jon was tired from a long day that had only followed a long week and a half. Crossing his arms  
over his chest, he gave her a look that told her he wasn’t backing down and letting her have her way this time, "I understand that you are very fit and capable of walking. However, you need to understand that I was raised to believe certain things and one of those things is that females are not to walk long distances on their own. It’s not an emergency and necessary for you to do. If one of your friends can’t drive you, I am sure one of the guys will be happy to do so. Most of them won’t be in the meeting."

Dany took a deep breath, "Fine, I won’t walk."

Jon inwardly cheered at having won the battle with her. Usually he would concede because it wasn’t worth it, but he knew that he’d have to draw a line at some point and the sooner the better. Dany was going to find that just because she dug her heels in did not mean that Jon would automatically acquiesce. Real marriage or not, they had a relationship and part of that was compromise.

However, he felt if he brought up the fact that his truck was not going to be safe for an infant to ride in, and since he had to pretend he had every intention of going through with the divorce so they really needed to get Dany her own car… he’d be pushing his luck. He’d better save that argument for another day.

"Morning," Dany smiled as Jon joined her at the dining room table, then cringed when she took in his appearance. It was obvious that he’d had a rough watch night, since the day before all they’d done was hang out in their new home and go grocery shopping, "Is everything okay?"

Jon nodded as he poured himself a bowl of cereal, "Sorry, I’m just still tired. My body feels like one huge bruise, plus I didn’t get in until three because I was filling out paperwork."

"Oh," Dany sighed, feeling sorry for him, "Why don’t you just go back to bed? We don’t have to go today… or we can go in the afternoon."

"No, it’s fine, we’ll get our books this morning just as we planned," Jon replied firmly.

"If you’re sure," she said, looking back down at the newspaper as she’d been doing before he’d emerged from his bedroom.

Jon took a mouthful of cereal and watched as Dany circled something on the newspaper, "What are you doing?"

"Looking for a job," she answered, glancing up at him.

"Any luck?"

"Well, nothing to get excited about, but there are a few openings. If I can get a job at one of the major department stores at the mall, then I can hopefully get a raise after a few months," Dany said optimistically.

"You know that you can just take the money they are giving me for my wife and child and not have to have a job," Jon pointed out. Just because Dany was insisting on this didn’t mean he had to agree and not try to persuade her to change her mind.

Dany looked back down at the paper, "I’m aware."

Jon grabbed the sports section and read about the upcoming Superbowl while he finished his breakfast. Dany remained silent, either because she was busy concentrating on the want ads, or she was annoyed. Jon wasn’t sure, but he was feeling rather cranky, so he wasn’t too concerned.

Once he was done eating, Jon stood and put his bowl in the kitchen sink, telling her "I’m going to go shower."

"Okay."

Jon was walking out of the kitchen when his phone began to ring. "Hello?"

"Ah, Jon, hello, this is Jorah Mormont."

"Hey," Jon replied, "Did you want to talk to Dany?"

"No… err, well, yes, I would like to talk to her, but I did want to speak with you as well," Jorah told him.

"Okay," Jon said, waving his hand at Dany who was giving him a questioning look. Deciding the phone wasn’t for her, she went back to her want ads- and praying that amid all the minimum-wage, no-respect job openings, there was her dream job just waiting for her.

"I am not sure if you were aware, but Wednesday is Daenerys’ nineteenth birthday," Jorah said from his end of the phone.

Jon glanced at the girl and smiled, "No, I had no idea."

"I was hoping to take her out for dinner to celebrate."

"I’m sure she’ll like that."

Jorah smiled, "Good… I would like it if you joined us as well."

"Oh, that’s okay, you don’t have to include me, I understand."

"No, I would really appreciate it if you came," Jorah insisted, "Dany is very important to me. She’s… well, she is like the daughter I never had. And now you are a very big part of her life. Even if you are her husband in name only… well, you’re important to her. I would like if the two of us had a chance to get to know each other."

"Okay… if that’s what you want, it sounds great to me. Just tell me when and I’ll be ready to go," Jon replied.

"Splendid," Jorah said, "I assume as far as you know, Daenerys has no plans for the evening?"

"I’m pretty sure she doesn’t. Is this supposed to be a surprise?"

"No… I just wanted to check first. If you don’t mind handling over her the phone, you can go ahead and put her on," Jorah told her, "Thank you, Jon."

Jon smiled, "I’ll see you Wednesday."

Dany looked surprised when he held the phone out to her, "Who is it?"

"Jorah," he answered as she took the phone, "I’ll just go shower."

"Okay," she frowned, wondering what Jon and Jorah had been talking about, "Hey Jorah."

"Hello Dany," he greeted warmly.

"Is there something wrong?"

Chuckling, Jorah assured her, "Everything is fine. I was just asking Jon about his schedule."

"His schedule? Why?"

"Because Wednesday is your birthday and I would like to take you two out for dinner."

Dany grinned, elated to hear that Jorah had remembered. She’d been very busy as of late and hadn’t had much time to think about stuff, but of course she’d remembered that her birthday was coming up and she’d feared it would pass by unobserved by anyone. "That would be really nice!"

"Good, then it’s settled. Would it be okay if I picked you two up at your place at six-thirty?"

"It’s a date," Dany replied happily. 

Jorah talked to her for a while more before they hung up and Dany decided to do the breakfast dishes since she was all ready to go. Despite the fact that Jon constantly assured her this was not a fate worse than death, she still felt obligated to make herself useful… earn her keep… all that stuff.

Dany had washed, dried and put away all the dishes and had begun watching La Casa de Papel on Netflix when Jon came out of his bedroom. After shower, he felt like a new man. Plus, he was now eagerly anticipating her birthday… something he viewed as another occasion to win Dany’s heart.

"Ready to go?" Jon asked her.

Dany nodded and turned off the TV before getting up and following him out the door and across the patio to the door that led to their own private garage. It was a feature of their apartment that had been a pleasant surprise to Jon, since his truck could be easily stolen and he now had the added security of being able to lock it up in their private garage. Plus, if Dany got her own car, he wouldn’t have to worry about her walking far in the dark when she was further along in her pregnancy. 

As Jon pulled out of the apartment complex and out into the street, he noticed a grin on Dany’s face and asked "So, are you looking forward to Wednesday?"

Dany shrugged, "Sort of."

"Only sort of? I’m twenty-two and I still really look forward to my birthdays."

"Well, I have a bad record with birthdays," she informed him, wrinkling her nose.

"How so? Lame gifts?"

"I wish," she sighed, "My parents died on my 12th birthday”.

"Oh. I’m sorry I asked," Jon said, “and made you go over all that painful stuff."

Dany waved her hand, "Don’t worry about it. I mean, I miss them but I don’t dwell on it anymore. I treasure the few memories I have of them and my uncle was very good to me while growing up. As sad as it is, I can’t change it and pouting about it won’t help me one bit. Besides, I need to focus on other things now," she added quietly, stroking her hand over her belly.

"This year’s going to be different, Dany," Jon swore.

Dany just smiled at him, not really giving what he said any merit. He’d learn… after Wednesday he would see that the fates loved screwing Daenerys Targaryen over and it was better just to brace yourself and try to endure the storm than fight it.


	24. Of birthday and gifts

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've got one more chapter updated!

"Are you sure you don’t want me to go in with you?" Jon asked as he pulled to a stop in front of Dragonstone General.

"Positive," Dany replied, grabbing her purse and opening the passenger door, "I’m fine, Jon. Besides, you have your meeting."

He shrugged, "I have some time. I could walk you in."

She smiled, "It’s okay, I’ll see you later."

"Yeah," he said, "Bye."

Dany gave him another smile as she shut the door behind her. Jon waited until she walked into the front doors of the hospital before pulling the rest of the way around the circular drive in front of the hospital and heading towards Castle Black so that he could go down into the headquarters for what was sure to be a long, boring meeting. 

He wished he could instead go with Dany for her appointment. Unfortunately, the meeting was required so he couldn’t get out of it. Besides, despite the fact that he was her husband and they were growing closer and closer… asking to go with her to see the doctor might be a little intrusive.

Sighing, he got his mind back on his work and mentally prepared himself for the meeting. They were going to go over all the statistics of captures, kills, and costs for the past year. Despite the fact that the Night's Watch was definitely one of the most unusual in the U.S. Government, there was still the bottom line. That meant there would probably be several more of these meetings over the next few months until they’d created a sort of criteria for efficiency in time and costs in order to reach their goals.

As much as he loved his job he hated the paperwork aspect. Still, knowing now that he wasn’t just doing this because it went along with the job, but he was doing it so he could provide for his wife and child… even if his wife wasn’t really his wife and his child wasn’t really his child, they still needed him… and it made it all worth it.

Jon glanced at his watch as he walked in the door of their apartment Wednesday afternoon, wondering how long he had to shower, dress and make sure the apartment was ready for Missandei to come in and set everything up. He’d spent the past several hours running all over town and buying party supplies before meeting with her at the coffee shop so that they could make their final plans. 

Dany would look back on this day and smile for many years to come if it killed him.

He was walking past Dany’s bedroom door towards his room when he heard a soft sobbing. Pausing, he listened more closely to confirm the fact that Dany was indeed crying in her bedroom. He told himself to leave her alone, that he would always be there for Dany and she knew that, but that if he didn’t let her come to him she would feel suffocated. She was in her own bedroom and not on the couch, so he had to assume she wanted privacy.

It didn’t stop him from slowly opening the door and stepping inside, however. He couldn’t bear the thought of Dany being so upset today of all days. She’d been so happy that morning when Grey had picked her up to take her to apply for jobs at the mall. Grey had shared her enthusiasm as he had ushered her out the door while winking at Jon, since he knew he was also doing him a favor by getting Dany out of the apartment for a few hours.  
Seeing Dany on her stomach on the bed, her face in a pillow as her shoulders shook with her sobs, Jon quickly walked over to her, kneeling beside the bed and gingerly reaching his hand over to touch her back. As soon as he made contact Dany jerked and looked at him in surprise, obviously she hadn’t noticed that she wasn’t alone in her room.

"Sorry," he said quietly, "I just heard you crying and I came in."

Dany forced herself to stop crying as she sat up. Wiping her face with her hands, she said, "I don’t know what’s wrong with me. I’m just disappointed, but I normally don’t let it get me so upset."

"Hey, it’s the anniversary of your parents’ death and you have that whole hormonal thing going on and remember your doctor told you about the mood swings. "

Looking down in her lap, she said, "It’s not only that. I went and applied at a whole bunch of stores. A lot of them didn’t seem too interested when I turned it in… so I don’t expect calls. But at one of the places, they looked at it right away. They weren’t too crazy about the fact that I can’t work until the middle of the afternoon because of school. She said they needed a morning person. Plus, I don’t have a car… I’m planning on walking, but they want someone to be able to come right away… a car person, basically."

"I have a car, though, and you know I’ll drive you," Jon reminded her.

"When you can," she pointed out, "You’re not always around."

Jon moved up onto the bed next to her, "Don’t worry, you’ll find something."

Dany nodded, "I have no choice. See, it’s not just the disappointment. I need a job so badly."

"You know you don’t," he insisted before sighing since he knew she was too stubborn to agree, "But I’ll talk to the guys. Someone will be able to help, I’m sure of it."

Dany touched the side of his face and smiled up at him, "You’re so good to me."

She began crying again, but Jon wasn’t sure if it was because she was still upset or just overwhelmed by how ‘good’ he was. Instead, he just embraced her and remained silent until Dany grew quiet.

"You know," Jon said, "it’s five o’clock. That means you could go take a nice long bath and relax and still have plenty of time to get dressed for dinner before Jorah gets here to pick us up."

"That sounds very nice," she replied quietly.

Jon nodded and released her, then stood up, "I’ll leave you alone so you can do that."

"Thanks, Jon… for everything."  
He began walking to the door, but stopped and looking back at her disheveled, tear-stained, absolutely gorgeous form and smiled, "Try not to worry, okay?"

She nodded and smiled, "I trust you."

Her words warmed his heart and made him grin as he left her alone in the room and shut the door. With an extra bounce in his step, he headed off to take his own shower. Jorah would be there in an hour and a half and he still had a lot of work to do.

"Jon, what are you doing?"

Jon guiltily looked over at Dany as she stood in the doorway of his bedroom, watching him straighten the pillows and comforter on her bed to look like nobody was sleeping in there on a regular basis.

"Just straightening up," he lied. Seeing that she didn’t believe him, he tried to change the subject, "You look beautiful."

There, that wasn’t a lie. He’d sneaked into her bedroom while she was in the bathroom doing her hair and make-up and the results were quite outstanding. She was wearing just a simple black dress and heels with her hair braided and curled around her face… and Jon had to resist the urge to grab her and hold her to him while he kissed her until the need to breathe made them stop.

"Thank you," she replied, letting it slide that he was actually in her room, touching her stuff… and she didn’t for a minute buy that he was straightening up. "You look really nice. I like that sweater."

Jon looked down at the dark blue sweater his mother had told him really brought out his dark eyes and smiled sheepishly, "It was a Tormundtmas gift."

"Well… good gift."

He was desperately trying to find a way to get them out of her room and forgetting about this whole thing when he was saved by a knock at the door. 

"That must be Jorah," he grinned, relieved.

"Yeah, I just need my coat," Dany told him, going over to her closet and opening the door.

Jon held his breath as she walked inside to retrieve her coat, praying she wouldn’t notice that he’d taken a few of her dresses and a couple pairs of shoes. She stepped out a few seconds later and looked at him with concern.

"Are you okay?"

Jon nodded fervently, realizing she had no idea anything was missing, "Just hungry."

Dany gave him a strange look before leaving him alone in the room to go answer the door. Jon followed, glancing around the apartment and looking for anything suspicious. He knew Missandei intended to do the same, but she had a lot to do and not a lot of time to do it, so the more he had done already, the better.

"Hi Jorah," Dany greeted, grinning at her watcher.

"Hello Daenerys, happy birthday," Jorah replied, stepping inside the apartment, "Hello Jon."

"Hi," Jon said, shaking the older man’s hand.

"Do you want a tour before we go?" Dany offered.

"Actually," Jorah answered, watching as Jon jerked his head towards the door, trying to tell him he needed him to get Dany out of there, "we have reservations. How about you show me after? I wanted to show you something outside, in fact."

"Okay, that’s fine," Dany replied, sliding her coat on with Jon’s gentlemanly assistance.

Jorah held out his arm and Dany gleefully took it, happy to be spending the evening in his company.

"Uh, I forgot something," Jon blurted out when the two of them were out the door.

Before Dany could follow Jon back inside, Jorah led her away, "We’ll wait for him by the car."

"Okay," she replied, eager to see what Jorah had to show her.

"Do you recall telling me several years ago when we were hurrying somewhere and my beetle wasn’t quite cutting it that I needed a ‘grown-up’ car?"

"Not specifically, but I certainly believe your beloved beetle not cutting it and telling you so," Dany quipped.

Jorah smiled, "Well, I took your advice."

Dany stopped and looked at him in shock, "New car?"

Nodding, he pointed at a shiny, red, convertible BMW, "Behold my new automobile."

Dany walked over to the car, stunned, "Wow, this is nice! Not just nice in comparison to your old hunk of junk… it’s really nice!"

"I’m glad you like it," Jorah replied, "If it didn’t meet your standards, I would have been grossly disappointed."

Jon rushed through the apartment, making sure that by all appearances to anyone who wouldn’t open the closets and look in drawers that he and Dany were a normal husband and wife. Satisfied that everything would be okay, he picked up his phone and dialed Missandei’s phone number.

She was obviously waiting for his call and picked up on the first ring. Knowing time was of the essence, Jon ominously told her it was time before hanging up and heading out the door. He locked the door and quickly headed out to Jorah’ car.

He’d never seen his vehicle, but Jon never would have guessed that Jorah would drive the convertible that Dany was currently sitting in the driver’s seat of, babbling about the wind in her hair.

Seeing Jon approach, Jorah gave him a questioning look and received a nod in answer. Turning back to the birthday girl, Jorah said, "Jon’s here, time to go, Dany."

Dany sighed and climbed out the driver’s seat, "You totally should teach me how to drive now, Jorah."

Jorah took the seat she had vacated, "Actually, I would say that would have been a much better idea when I drove up the old car."

Jon smiled and climbed in the backseat so that Dany could sit in front with Jorah, "I’ll teach you how to drive, Dany."

Dany widened her eyes at his offer, "You will? Seriously?"

"Sure."

Dany grinned at Jorah as she slid into the passenger seat and put on her seatbelt, "He’s so cool, isn’t he?"

"One could use that choice of words," Jorah replied, "My own personal preference is ‘insane’."

Dany rolled her eyes and settled into her seat as Jorah backed out of his parking spot, "Did you drive over here with the top down?"

"No, I took it down for you to see it in all it’s glory. It’s cold."

Dany and Jon nodded in agreement. They weren’t wusses, a little chilly weather was no big deal.

They were almost out of the complex when Jorah stopped the car, "Iti is January. Who else wants the top up?"

Dany and Jon promptly raised their hands as they shivered.

When Dany walked into the Essossi restaurant with a handsome man on either side of her, she felt more special than she had in a long time. For the first time that day, she wondered if Jon might really be right. Maybe this year would be different after all.

They were soon led to a small table where a waiter held the chair out for her. 

"I have a bit of an announcement," Jorah informed them, frowning when he saw all the color drain from Dany’s face, "Are you feeling okay, Dany?"

She nodded and gave him a serious look, "I just want you to know that if I feel outbursty, I’ll do it, regardless of how nice the restaurant is."

Jorah shared a confused look with Jon, "Okay…"

"So if you think you can tell me something horrible that you think I’d scream and cry about in private, but be cooler here… you’re wrong. My temper can be quite short."

"Well, I should hope that you won’t feel a need to scream and cry," he replied, "You could say that, like you, I am making a lot of changes in my life. The new car… and a new occupation. I was quite happy to stop being a trader, but being a… man of leisure really didn’t fulfill me. So… I purchased a magic shop."

“This is so great, Jorah. I’m happy for you."

Jorah saw the way she was smiling and knew her words were genuine. Grinning, he continued on with the rest of his announcement, "I also had an idea. Daenerys, you told me the other day you were going to look for a job. I’m going to need someone to help me out. At the very least help me keep an eye on the store for a part of the day, especially afternoons. Someone I could trust. If you were willing to work for me, I could give you the hours you needed so that you could work around school, plus I have been looking at the sales records for the store and I can give you a very competitive wage."

Jon smiled, happy to hear that Dany’s job search was ending. Now he knew that she wouldn’t have one of those bosses that took advantage of their employees, keeping her working late and underpaying her. He could see that Jorah loved Dany, he’d treat her very well.

"I don’t know," Dany sighed, "I feel like I’m taking advantage of your generosity."

"You aren’t," he insisted, "Please, Dany, it would make me happy if you agreed to work for me."  
Smiling, she nodded her head, "Okay… you’ve got yourself an employee."

Jon felt so happy for her right then. Finally something was working out for Dany. She certainly deserved it, especially considering her run of bad luck as of late.  
Jorah told Dany about all his plans for the magic shop and she animatedly gave her input and shared ideas with the man. Jon could tell that with the two of them working on it, the shop would certainly be remarkable.

After the waiter reappeared and took their orders, Jon asked, "Think it’s time for Dany to open her presents?"

Dany rubbed her hands together and grinned as Jon retrieved a small box from his pocket and Jorah lifted a small gift bag she hadn’t even noticed him carry in to the restaurant. Jorah handed her the bag first, so she set it in her lap and stuck her hand inside, digging around for her present. Finding something, she pulled the object out and found a vanilla scented candle inside a glass votive, "Ooh, this is beautiful! I love these!"

"Yes, Missandei told me you enjoyed candles… she helped me pick out your presents. She said you’d like some candles to put in your room?"

Dany nodded, "I do need some. Plus, I love vanilla."

Reaching back inside the bag, she pulled out a copy of ‘What To Expect When You’re Expecting,’ and looked up at Jorah with tears in her eyes, "This is so great. I… I need this. It was so sweet of you to think of this!"

Jorah smiled timidly, "Well, you know how I feel about books… and I suspect you know how to read, so I thought it was a good idea."

Dany laughed as she leaned over and hugged him, "Thank you."

"You’re very welcome. I was worried you might be rather annoyed that I gave you more of a baby gift when it’s your birthday."

"No way! For one thing, I need the book, not the baby. And for another… I’m in this phase where I love anything baby-related. You could have given me those teeny baby shoes and heard me squeal," she informed him, then took the box Jon handed her. She unwrapped it and found a jewelry box. Opening the box, she found a silver heart-shaped locket inside and gasped, "Jon, it’s beautiful."

Jon grinned, "It opens up… I was thinking you could put a picture of the baby in when the time comes."

"That’s a wonderful idea," she replied as she leaned over to him as she had done to Jorah, but she kissed Jon on the cheek.

Jon tried to play it cool, but Jorah noticed that the man who allegedly was only married to Dany as her friend looked far too happy to be hugging her tightly. Smiling, he knew that without a doubt, Jon felt a lot more for Dany than he was admitting.

And that made him happy.

"How about you give me the grand tour now?" Jorah suggested as he and Dany followed Jon to the door of their apartment after their filling meal.

Dany smiled proudly, anxious to show Jorah all that she’d done in her first place of her own, "You got it. Just remember, we just moved in and I haven’t had a chance to do all the little details I want yet."

"All right," he agreed.

Jon opened the door and loudly said, "It’s so good to be home, isn’t it Dany?"

As planned, the lights flipped on and they were greeted by two dozen of their closest friends crammed into the living room with smiling faces, with the exception of Edd, who stood off to the side. He’d only come out of obligation to Jon, who had only invited him out of obligation to Edd. Since they were best friends, there were certain rules of etiquette that defied logic.

Shocked, Dany stood open-mouthed in the doorway, staring at all the people who were apparently there for her party. Slowly, Jorah led her inside, giving her a chance to let it soak in. Within a few seconds she was grinning and hugging Missandei, Grey and many of the guys from the Night’s Watch.

Jon and Jorah were soon left alone as Dany’s attention was taken by the guests at her party, especially the guys who were originally his friends. Jorah moved next to the soldier so that they could have a more private conversation.

"Be completely honest with me. How is she doing?"

Jon looked up, "Emotionally or health-wise?"

"Both," Jorah answered.

"Well, she went to the doctor yesterday and they said she’s doing great. I mean, she still has morning sickness, but that’s normal. She even got to hear the baby’s heartbeat at her check-up, she was so excited," Jon told him.

"Yes, she called me when she got home yesterday."

"Emotionally… for her situation I think she’s doing great. I mean, what she’s going through is really hard and it’s only normal for her to be a little… unsettled. But she loves this baby and I don’t think there is any part of her regretting her pregnancy. I think she’s okay with the marriage too. In fact, it gives her a sense of security. She doesn’t have to worry about having the necessities. She was pretty upset earlier because she applied for jobs this morning and it didn’t go well, but thanks to you she has a job now. I really think she’s going to be fine."

"She seems to be looking forward to working and the baby and this home," Jorah observed.

"Yeah, she does… I have to say if I were in her shoes… I’d be bitter."

Jorah nodded in agreement, "She has a great ability to bounce back."

Jon sighed, knowing she’d gotten that ability from constantly needing to bounce back. If he had any say, she’d never have a reason to bounce back from anything again.

"I’m so glad to see you’re happy. After our lunch today…" Grey told Dany referring to the fact that she was nearly in tears during their ‘birthday lunch’ that Grey had insisted they have since he’d told her had to work that night as part of the story he, Jon and Missandei had made up.

"I’m very happy. I don’t think I should tell you exactly why, though. It’s Jorah’s news to share," she explained.

Grey raised his eyebrows, "I’m definitely going to him for info," and kissed Missandei while leaving.

Dany laughed as her friend walked away and headed over to Jorah, leaving her alone with Missandei. Turning to her friend, she said "This is so amazing. It must have taken a lot of work. Thank you so much!"

"I don’t get all the credit," Missandei told her, "Jon’s the one who had the idea. He called me up Monday and told me he wanted to do this. I helped him plan it, but he’s the one who spent hours today going around and getting the plates, decorations, balloons, ordering your cake… all that. He called me when you guys left for dinner and I came in and set it up."

"He did all that for me?" Dany asked, astonished. She honestly didn’t understand why Jon continually went out of the way to make her happy.

Missandei nodded, "Yup… I’d say he likes you."

Dany took it the wrong way and rolled her eyes, "Of course he likes me! He married me to help me out. Jon’s a true friend… and we get along great."

Missandei just smiled at her friend, wondering when Dany would realize that Jon wanted their relationship to be a lot more romantic than platonic. It seemed pretty obvious to everyone besides Dany!


	25. Of unexpected phone calls

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There's Drogo in this chapter, but there is a reason and it'll move the plot forward.

Just as Jorah was walking into his apartment, his phone began ringing. He picked it up, cheerfully greeting, "Hello?"

"Jorah?"

The voice on the other end of the phone immediately made Jorah forget what a good mood he’d been in after Dany’s birthday party. Sighing, he replied, "Drogo."

"I suppose you hate me," the buffer said quietly.

Jorah wasn’t sure how to respond to that, because he didn’t really know how he felt about Drogo. One on hand, he loved Dany and Drogo had really messed up her life so many times, but now was the worst. He’d gotten her pregnant and left her… because of him, Dany was a single, teenage mother. Because of Drogo, her life was destined to be hard. Jorah felt a lot of anger towards Drogo for that. 

"I don’t hate you. I don’t like the situation Daenerys is in, which you are partially responsible for," Jorah answered, "I know she is as well, but since she is the one who must deal with the situation, it’s easier to be more forgiving towards her."

"Is she okay?"

Jorah debated about whether or not he should give Drogo all the details of Dany’s life. She’d never told him he couldn’t tell Drogo. Then again, she probably hadn’t expected Drogo to call him. Besides, he probably wouldn’t react well and the last thing Dany needed was dealing with Drogo voicing his disapproval. Making his decision, Jorah sat down on his couch and said, "Daenerys is doing very well. She is in perfect health."

Drogo released an unneeded breath, "That’s great, thank you so much for telling me. I’ve been worrying about her constantly ever since… she told me."

"Really? That was hard to tell, considering you haven’t tried to contact her for a month and a half," Jorah replied, then sighed.

"No, you’re right. I was a coward. I hate the fact that I told Dany that I won’t be there. I hate that I won’t get to know this child, that they might feel rejection because they won’t have a father. But Jorah… I can’t. As much as I don’t think it’s fair to stay away from this child, it’s even more unfair for me to be in it’s life, to tell it I am their father, but I can’t do a lot of what the other fathers do," Drogo explained sorrowfully, "And most of all, if I were to be there… I just can’t do that."

Jorah nodded, "That’s a very good point and I agree with you. I would be lying if I said I was perfectly content with the idea of Dany raising a baby alone, especially when she is so young, but I do know that you are right. She insists on keeping this baby, so this is for the best."

"I want to help, though. The only way I think I can, at least for now, is financially," Drogo told him, "I’ve been looking into things and I know that most insurance companies will not cover costs when the teenage daughter of one of their customers gets pregnant. I am not sure which company Aemon uses, but if they are like that, Dany’s going to rack up a lot of very expensive bills."

Jorah had to stop himself from giving into the guilt of almost lying and confess that Dany’s medical costs would be completely covered by the military. Instead, he said, "That may be true, but we both know Dany and she isn’t likely to let you give her money. She’s too proud for that."

"I know… that’s why I called you and not her. Dany listens to you, you have influence."

"Drogo, I’m not sure I like the idea of conspiring behind her back."

Drogo sighed, "I know that, Jorah, but you know that she won’t *let* me help her, even though she really should. It’s for her own good. This time even though we will be talking and planning behind Dany’s back, it won’t be keeping a secret from her. I’m not asking you to give her money from me and tell her it’s from you. I just want you to act as a go-between and convince her to take my money. Could you at least try it? For Dany’s sake?"

Jorah closed his eyes and rubbed his forehead, "Alright, but I am only doing this because it will help Dany."

Relieved, Drogo nodded, "I know that… thank you, though."

"So how are we going to do this?" Jorah asked, leaning forward. Hopefully Drogo had a really good, persuasive plan.

* 

Dany moaned and put her feet up on the coffee table as she relaxed on the couch. As proud as she was of the tremendous job she and Jorah had done with the magic shop over the past three weeks, it had left her aching and exhausted. At least they were finally finished, with their grand opening the next day. That thought made her a little nervous- she prayed things would go well, not only because then she’d have a job for sure, but more importantly to her, so that Jorah wouldn’t have to be disappointed.

Over the past few years, she’d always considered herself close to her friend but after all the time they had spent together getting everything ready… Dany knew Jorah was like an older brother. He loved her and he would love her child. She’d always be able to count on him and Dany had to prove he could rely on her as well.

Sighing, Dany grabbed her English Literature textbook and prepared to read the story the professor had assigned the day before. It was two weeks into the semester and so far she had been able to keep up her schoolwork while juggling the work at the magic shop and everything else she had to deal with in her new life with relative ease. Still, she had no idea how she was going to be able to handle it when she had the baby. If she was tired now, another human being needing her for everything was going to be killer.

She was just getting interested in the story when the telephone began to ring. Glancing at the clock as she reached for the phone on the end table next to her, she saw that Jon was due home in a while, so maybe he was calling to see if she’d like him to pick up dinner. He’d done it a lot lately, which she really appreciated, since she was too tired to cook anything for herself and would be happy to skip meals, only it would be bad for the baby.

"Hello?"

"Oh, hello," a woman replied on the other end, "Is Jon there?"

Dany was taken aback that a female was calling, since Jon didn’t seem to be attempting to date like she’d insisted he could. Then again, if one could judge age by voices, this woman was not college-age. Clearing her throat, she replied, "No… he’s not. I’d be happy to take a message for you, though."

"That’s very sweet," Aunt Cat Snow purred on her end of the line. Obviously she was speaking to the famous Dany she’d been so dying to learn any details about. She’d known that if she had pushed Jon to let her speak to her new daughter-in-law, even if she wasn’t *truly* Jon’s wife, he would have forbade her… but here she was on the phone with the object of her curiosity… wouldn’t it be rude not to make an attempt to get to know her a little? Smiling, she continued, "I don’t suppose you’re Dany."

Dany’s eyebrow quirked as she wondered just who she was speaking to, "Actually, I am."

"Oh, I’m so excited! I’m Catelyn Stark, Jon’s aunt," the older woman exclaimed.

Grinning, Dany replied, "Mrs. Stark, I’m so happy to get to talk to you. I didn’t feel right asking Jon to let me, since it’s sort of impeding on his space, but I really wanted to tell you in person.. sort of… how grateful I am for your help with the furniture… and for understanding about what Jon did."

"Honey, I just received your email last week. I’m sorry I haven’t gotten a reply off to you yet, but we’ve all had the flu here," Aunt Cat informed her, "It was such a lovely thank you, it just proves I was right when I decided you must be a darling girl."

"You are so sweet, even more than I had thought. I hope Jon knows how lucky he is," Dany sighed, amazed at how she was opening up. She would have assumed that if she was talking to the aunt of the guy that had married her because she’d gotten herself pregnant with *another* guy’s baby, she’d feel at least a little awkward.

"Well, you’ll find out soon enough that children rarely ever see their parents as the most wonderful," Aunt Cat smiled, "By the way, how are things with the baby?"

"Everything is great," Dany answered, happy that she actually seemed interested in the baby… without frowning about how wretched the situation was. She was treating her like a normal new mother, which only Jon had come close to doing. As much as she loved Jorah and he was trying to accept the baby, he always had a sad look in his eyes when he was reminded of Dany’s condition. Patting her still-flat stomach, she added, "I have to go in for a check-up in a week and a half and then they will do a bunch of tests, but so far everything appears absolutely perfect."

"That’s wonderful," Aunt Cat responded, "And you’re feeling alright? No symptoms?"

"Well, I had morning sickness every day or so for a while… but I haven’t even been nauseous for a couple of weeks now. I think I may get tired easier now, but I’m not sure if it’s just not that I’ve been so busy."

"Oh, yes, Jon told me that you just started a new job."

"A friend of mine… well, he’s kind of like a brother to me… he just bought a store and we’ve been working hard getting everything arranged… we’re actually opening for business tomorrow."

"That’s so good to hear, about the store and about you having a friend who is so close to you. Please forgive me if I am overstepping my bounds… but Jon told me how your uncle didn’t take the news about you being pregnant so well… I feel just sick about that, but it makes me happy to hear you have someone in your life who means so much to you."

"That’s fine," Dany assured her, "Jorah.. that’s his name… he didn’t really love it when I told him I was having a baby and keeping it at first… but he has accepted it."

"That’s wonderful, sweetling. I also want you to know that even though nobody could ever replace your mother, you can always give me a call if you have questions, need reassurance or just want to talk. I remember what it was like, especially when I was pregnant with my oldest, and there are some times when you’re just scared."

Dany felt tears well up in her eyes, "I can’t believe how sweet you are! I mean, when Jon told me about you, I knew you were cool, but I had no idea you were this great!"

She was so caught up in her conversation with Aunt Cat, that Dany hadn’t even heard Jon come into the apartment. He walked into the living room and found her wiping tears from her eyes on the couch while she spoke on the phone.

Dany looked up and saw him standing there, then gave him a brilliant smile and said into the phone, "Oh, guess who is home?"

Jon frowned, wondering who she was talking to as he pulled off his coat and flung it onto the recliner while Dany said goodbye and held the phone out towards him, "It’s your aunt, she wants to talk to you. I’ll go start dinner… how does pesto sound?"

"Good," he nodded numbly, taking the phone from her, rather confused. Since when were Dany and his mother the best of friends?


	26. Of new beginnings

"Hey, check this place out," Grey exclaimed as he and Missandei made their way to the counter in the crowded magic shop.  
Dany thanked the person she was ringing up and grinned at her friend, "I know, isn’t this amazing? When we opened up, Jorah and I were both completely nervous, but about half an hour later, someone came in and we’ve had customers since."

"That’s great," Missandei replied.

"Good Gods," Jorah lamented as he tiredly leaned against the counter. He’d spent the past few hours helping people find various books and other ingredients for spells. As exciting as it was that business was going well so far, he was completely overwhelmed.

"Here, come look in the cash register, it’ll make you feel better," Dany suggested, hitting a button so the drawer popped out.

Jorah walked around the counter and looked down at the drawer that was nearly filled with bills, "Oh my… money."

"Money from all the people who have been here and liked what we have. Isn’t it great how stores work?"

"Yes, very," Jorah nodded.

*

"So then I had to listen to my aunt talk nonstop about Dany for half an hour," Jon told Sam and Edd as they walked down the street.

"Oh, I can’t imagine how awful it must be to have someone go on and on and on about Dany forever and ever," Edd replied wryly.

Ignoring him, Jon continued, "Now they are like best friends. I have to hear her say that Dany’s the daughter-in-law she always dreamed of, and Dany tell me how lucky I am to have an aunt, who is a mother figure, like mine. You know, I can believe that Dany is completely innocent in this, but I can’t shake the feeling that my aunt is trying to persuade me into considering Dany as… a real wife."

"Of course, that’s ridiculous. You hardly know Dany’s even female," Edd replied sarcastically.

Jon glared at his friend, despite the fact that Edd was right. He certainly did feel more than just friendship for Dany, but there was no way he would admit that to his friend. Edd’s head would inflate to five times it’s normal size in a matter of seconds and Jon would never hear the end of it. Sighing, Jon said, "Edd, I know how you feel. You think I am getting in way too deep with Dany, and you absolutely do not approve of this marriage. Now, I want you to understand that I know you feel that way and it does not change things at all. Can you please keep those comments to yourself?"

"Just… stop talking about Dany and I will attempt to refrain," Edd answered, giving Sam a dirty look for the way he smirked at him.  
"So how are you doing keeping up with your all your work?" Samwell asked Jon.

"Fine," he replied, "My new… living arrangements… haven’t hurt any of my responsibilities. If anything, living off campus helps me to focus more on my work and less on partying."

"Man, college is all about partying. Now you have the studying and crappy parts of school and none of the fun parts," Edd told him, "Then again, you were always a weird one."

Jon smacked him on the back of the head, grinning. This was when he liked Edd- when they were buddies. It was just like old times… before he started really falling for Dany. Not that he regretted that. Dany had changed him so much… she’s made him see and feel things differently. It was like Dany had brought a new knowledge of life to him.

A big red sign caught his eye and Jon stopped in his tracks, "Guys, can we please drop in there?"

Samwell followed his friend’s stare and frowned upon seeing a magic store, "Since when are you into that stuff?"

"Yeah, you’re the last person I would ever imagine digging any voodoo crap or crystals," Edd agreed.

"That’s where Dany works," Jon explained, heading off to the store, "It’s their opening day, what kind of friend would I be if I didn’t go visit?"

Samwell smiled and followed while Edd stood still and shook his head disdainfully and murmured, "Probably the type who isn’t in love with the girl."

*

Dany finished putting all the customer’s merchandise in the bag and handed it to her with a smile, "Have a great day!"

The girl smiled and walked away, revealing Jon behind her, "Hey!"

Surprised, Dany grinned, "Hi, Jon, what are you doing here?"

"I came to see you… you know, check things out. Looks like business is going great!"

"It is," Dany nodded, "Jorah will be so psyched about it if he can make it through the day without having a nervous breakdown."

Jon glanced over at the older man, "Yeah, he looks a little bewildered."

"He’ll be okay, we just have a few more hours until we close."

"Oh yeah, what time do you get off again?" he asked, knowing full well that they were closing at five, then she and Jorah would take an hour to count the money and clean up, so she would be home at around a quarter after six. Still… he liked to play it cool and act like it wasn’t as important to him as it really was.

"About six… Jorah will drop me off at home, so I should be there about six-fifteen. Will you be home?"

"Yeah, I’m off work tonight."

"And it’s not like you’d ever want to go out like a normal unattached guy," Edd said quietly from behind him.

Without acknowledging him, Jon asked Dany, "How about I make you dinner to celebrate?"

"Macaroni and cheese?" Dany asked, since that was the only think besides cereal and microwaveable foods she had ever seen him make.

"I know how to cook… I just don’t do it normally. Trust me, you’ll love it. Is it a deal?"

"Sure," she replied, nodding before another customer approached with several books and she began ringing them up. "Sorry, Jon, things are just so busy."

"It’s fine, we need to get going anyway," he replied, backing away, "See you later."

"Bye," she called after him as the three guys walked out of the store.

Edd was determined not to say a thing about what had just occurred and instead walked determinedly towards the sports store where they had originally been heading. The other two guys followed silently, Sam being his usual quiet self, and Jon deep in thought.

They entered the store and Edd was choosing a new baseball cap when Jon exclaimed, "What am I going to make?"

Edd gave him a confused look while Samwell asked, "What are you talking about?"

"Dinner! She was right, I don’t know how to cook anything that requires more effort than adding two or three simple ingredients like a cup of milk. I have to make Dany something very special and I have no idea how."

"Do you even realize that you *obsess* over this girl? I don’t know why I bother worrying about you being lovesick… I should worry about her. A year from now you’ll be stalking her and she’ll have to take out a restraining order."

"Shut up, Edd, this is important. Do either of you guys have a clue what I can make?"

"Order pizza," Edd told him as he took the cap to the register.

Jon rolled his eyes, "Girls don’t think ordering pizza is romantic. Besides, I told her I would make something."

"Ha!" Edd shouted, pointing at Jon, "You just said romantic! See, I knew it. You aren’t just Dany’s best bud, you want her!"

"Okay, fine, I want to be more than friends with Dany," Jon confessed, "I think I might not mind it if we didn’t ever get divorced, but that’s getting ahead of myself. Right now, I’m just… wooing. Now, part of this wooing is making a romantic meal and I am going to need help."

Edd pulled out his wallet and paid the cashier, trying to feel satisfied that he was right, but he couldn’t feel anything but frustration. Jon now knew and admitted he was romantically interested in Dany, but that didn’t change the fact that Edd was positive the girl just thought Jon was some sweet guy who was a little wacky because he was willing to go so far to help her. She was still going to want a divorce and Jon was going to end up all heartbroken.

Deep inside, though, he feared that he was wrong about her. She might love what Jon is doing so much that she’d go along with the whole ‘staying married’ thing. He knew girls, especially teenage girls. Jon was her knight in shining armor and if he offered her a fairy tale life, she’d take it. They’d stay married, have sex, maybe have some more babies… but then in a few years things would be a mess. Edd thought the both of them were way too naïve and had no clue what they were getting into. He, on the other hand, knew all too well. His parents had gotten married young when his mother had gotten pregnant with him. Five years later they’d finally divorced, but it left all of them in a lot of pain. He certainly didn’t want his friend to be that way.

And he wasn’t going to sit idly by and let that happen to Jon.

*

"I must admit, I am shocked," Dany said as she took a sip of the apple cider Jon had chosen for their meal, as opposed to champagne. "Even when you told me you *could* cook, I didn’t really believe you."

Jon shrugged, "This really isn’t anything."

"No, it’s very good," she insisted, making him blush.

Jon felt rather guilty, since he’d used a spaghetti sauce. However, he *had* made the garlic sauce to put on the french bread and bake into garlic bread, so he supposed he deserved points for that. Actually, Sam deserved major points for helping him out by coming up with the idea for dinner and going through the grocery store to help him pick out ingredients while Edd sulked. They’d decided not to push it and had just picked out strawberry ice cream for dessert, but Jon was planning on putting the jar of hot fudge into the microwave, so that was something else that took effort.

They finished their meal with only light discussion about Dany’s customers and how high their sales had been, as well as Jon’s story about work last night on watch. As Dany finished her second slice of garlic bread and patted her stomach contentedly, Jon began picking up the dishes and shook his head firmly when she tried to help.

"I sure hope you have room for dessert."

"Dessert?" Dany asked, then decided she wasn’t too full for something sweet. She’d had a major sugar thing going on as of late. "I think I can make room."

Jon smiled as he carried the dishes into the kitchen, "Good… I think you’ll like this."

Dany tried to stop grinning like an idiot while Jon was out of her sight in the other room, since he’d closed the shutters separating the kitchen from the dining room so that he could surprise her with all the different foods. He was so sweet… she couldn’t help but wish the circumstances were different. But it wasn’t and she reminded herself that if she ignored that fact she’d only end up hurt again… and if there was one thing Dany absolutely refused to do, it was allow another man to break her heart.

"Ta da!" Jon announced as he emerged a moment later with two bowls of ice cream topped with fudge a moment later.

"Ooh, yummy," she smiled, taking the bowl from him, "Thank you *so* much, this is the kind of stuff I’ve been dreaming of for a while now."

"Hey," Jon said, swallowing his first spoonful of ice cream, "just so you know, I would be ever so happy to be your little cravings runner. No matter if it’s day or night, rain or snow, I’ll do it."

"I know that, but I would never ask you," she replied.

"Dany!"

"Jon, come on. Everyone knows that the only guy who should be tortured by going out in the middle of the night to pick up wacky foods is the fool who gets the craver pregnant. It’s sort of a twisted punishment God came up with. I’m saving up for my car, so hopefully I’ll have enough money to drive myself to the store to get food when the time comes," she informed him. "Of course, I don’t know how I’m going to learn how to drive to get my *license* but I think I can weasel Jorah into teaching me."

"I’ll do it," he volunteered, "I’m better, because I promise not to yell at you. I can tell, Jorah is the type to scream his head off."

"That’s true… are you sure?"

"Absolutely."

"It’s a deal," she declared, then reached over the table to shake his hand.

Jon took her smaller hand in his and caressed it for a few seconds before giving shaking it. Their hands lingered, not wanting to let go of each other, for a moment before they both awkwardly pulled away. Noticing some fudge had ended up next to her mouth, Jon picked up his napkin and leaned across the table to wipe it off. Dany sat perfectly still as Jon gently rubbed his napkin over his skin, long after the fudge was gone. They looked into each other’s eyes and Jon found his head moving closer to hers so that their mouths would meet. 

When they were mere inches apart, he froze. Dany’s eyes moved down to his lips and back up to his eyes as she tried to process what was happening. Jon caught himself and pulled back before he made a mistake and kissed her, most likely too soon. He knew that Dany would need a lot of his patience and he was more than willing to give it.

Clearing his throat, he said, "When’s your next day off?"

Her voice husky, she replied, "Tuesday."

Nodding, he said, "I don’t go in to work until seven that night. Maybe we can go practice driving then."

"Okay," she said, forcing herself to smile. Why did she feel like she was far beyond the point where she could save herself from heartbreak?


	27. Of new prospects

"I’m very proud of you, Dany," Jorah smiled as he stocked some books about reading tarot cards on the shelf. It was still early on a Saturday morning, so things weren’t too busy. They’d been open for business for three weeks and business was still doing great, but they rarely got very busy before the afternoon, and only had big rushes on the weekends.

"Well, to be fair, Jon is, like, a saint," she told him as she dusted off some crystal balls, "Who else could, without raising his voice once, teach me how to drive well enough to get a license in two and a half weeks?"

"That’s a good point, but Jon tells me you already were an okay driver and that helps the process of learning, "Jorah mused, walking back over to the counter to grab more books to stock.

"Well, you know, if you want to give me your praises for being a licensed driver… you could let me borrow your car every so often would really *prove* how sorry you are."

"I feel that my word is enough."

Dany rolled her eyes, "Fine… Jon will let me drive his truck."

"Are you still saving up? That truck will be completely useless once you have the baby. Definitely not safe."

"I know," she replied, "Besides, when the baby is about five months old, Jon’s gone, so I can’t rely on him for rides and stuff. I just don’t know what I should do. Am I really going to be able to save up enough for a decent car as well as all the stuff I’ll need for the baby before my kid is… oh… *eighteen*?"

Jorah stopped what he was doing and turned to her, "Dany, you know that if you need money, I would be more than happy to help."

"That’s okay, I told you guys that I would do this myself and I will. I already have a major advantage over most girls in my situation thanks to Jon. I’ll make it work," she told him, looking down. "I’m just not sure if I should buy the stuff for the baby before buying my car. I need to sit down and figure out how much income I have."

Jorah nodded, knowing that Dany’s pride would never allow him to pity her. "I’m sure it will work itself out," he said, before returning to his task.

Dany nodded, then moved over to the cash register to ring someone up.

*

"Hey!" Jon greeted as Samwell approached him in the deserted basketball court.

Samwell smiled at his friend as he caught the basketball Jon tossed to him. Taking in the fact that  
Jon’s shirt was off and he was getting sweaty, he asked, "How long have you been here?"

"Half an hour," Jon replied, "I dropped Dany off at work and figured if I went home I’d just have to head back out in ten minutes, so I came straight here."

"How did things at the DMV go?" Sam asked, making a shot and missing.

"She passed," Jon answered proudly, "Dany’s so excited."

"That’s great for her, tell her I said congratulations."

"I will," he replied, grateful that at least once of his best friends was supportive. 

"Oh yeah, Pyp told me to tell you that they are planning a big party for Tormund’s birthday in two weeks and they really want both you and Dany there."

"That should be fine. Jorah always closes at five on Saturdays, so she should be off by six. What time does the party start?"

"Seven, I think."

"Yeah, we can make it. Dany will like that, I think she enjoys hanging out with the guys."

"Good… I’ll tell them you two are in. Now maybe they’ll leave me alone. You wouldn’t believe how much they adore her," Sam said.

Jon smiled, "Oh, I think I can."

"Man, you have got it bad," Sam laughed.

Sighing, Jon knew he was right, "I do… I can’t help it. If I could choose, I don’t think I’d pick someone who was having a baby by some other guy and had only married me to help the baby… it would be a lot easier. But I can’t choose and Dany’s the one… she’s definitely worth the effort."

Samwell nodded, "I’m happy to hear that. For what it’s worth… I think you’ll get the girl."

*

Jorah sipped his tea and turned the page in the book he was reading on slavery, enjoying a quiet night at home after a long day at the store. He was quickly realizing that they couldn’t keep this up much longer. He was at that store from early morning to evening most days, except for the weekends when Dany didn’t have school and could open on her own, and it was taking a toll on him. He insisted on only making Dany work five days a week and her hours were much more decent, but with school and the fact that she was pregnant, he knew she was exhausted as well. They needed *help*.

The phone rang, disrupting his calm atmosphere. With a sigh, he picked it up, "Hello?"

"Hi Jorah, it’s me."

Jorah closed his eyes, really not needing yet another phone call from Drogo telling him how imperative it was for him to tell Dany about the checking account he had opened for her, "Hello Drogo."

"Is everything okay? You sound… well… not well."

"It’s fine, I’m just tired from work. I told you about my new business."

"Yeah… it’s doing well?"

"Extremely, Dany and I are both being run ragged."

"Jorah, in her condition, that’s not a good idea," Drogo said.

"Don’t worry, you know very well that I would never overwork Dany."

"I know… did you tell her yet?"  
"The right time just hasn’t come up yet. I know that she is not going to be too pleased when I tell her… I’m probably going to have to argue with her about it, and it’s the sort of thing I will have to keep pushing. We won’t resolve it in a day. And it seems that every day she is already in too bad or too good a mood for me to bring something up that will most likely make her angry with me."

"I know what you’re saying… it’s just that she needs this money and you have to tell her sooner or later," Drogo reminded him, "How is she doing?"

"Quite well, actually. Today she was in high spirits because she got her driver’s license," he said proudly.

Drogo smiled, remembering the times Dany had lamented to him that she was seemingly destined to be a lifetime pedestrian, "That’s good for her."

"Well, she’s going to need to be able to drive, especially once the baby comes and she has to take it all over town. Besides, none of us really like the idea of her walking all over when she is far along in her pregnancy," Jorah told him, "Now it’s only a matter of her saving up for a car."

"What about Aemon’s car? She won’t let her borrow it?" Drogo asked.

Jorah closed his eyes, knowing this was yet another time he would have to out and out lie to Drogo, "I’m not sure… but Dany needs her *own* car, so that she can go when she needs to."

"That’s true," Drogo agreed as the wheels in his head began turning. Dany needed a car… if he could help her get one, it would be for the good of both the woman he loved and his unborn child. This was definitely something he could work on….

*

Drogo knocked loudly on the door to the dark apartment. It had taken him three days of hard work to find this low-life, but if he could catch him now and get the job done, it would be worth it.

The door opened, revealing a skinny man on the other side of the threshold. He gave him a cautious look and said, "Yeah?"

Drogo had the feeling that if he tried doing this the civil way, he’d find himself chasing this man all over the city, so there was really only one way to go. Reaching out, he grabbed him by the throat and shoved him back against a wall just inside the apartment.

The guy began shrieking, "What? What do you want? What?"

Drogo gave him an icy glare, "I’m here to remind you of your debt."

"M-Mago sent you?"  
"Friend of his," Drogo responded, not letting go, "You owe seventy-five grand… and if you like not being a hood ornament, you’d better pay up within the next twenty-four hours, or I’m coming back."

"I-I don’t got that kind of money!" he protested, shaking with fear so badly that he began tapping loudly against the wall.

Drogo looked him in the eye and knew that he didn’t have to worry about hurting some fool that had gotten in over his head, "Oh, I think you do. Now, if Mago doesn’t have his money by this time tomorrow, he’s going to give me a call. If I get that call… well, I’m not going to be happy. I’m going to come and hunt you down. Even if you run… I’ll find you. I found you here, didn’t I?"

The creature nodded frantically, "I’ll pay him, I swear it!"

"Good, that’s what I want to hear," Drogo replied slowly, then shoved the man back into the wall as one final warning.

He turned around and walked briskly out of the apartment and through the building so he could get in his car, drive home, and try to repress the fact that he had ever sunk so low.

Still, if he got his payoff, it was worth it.

*

“I feel it is important for me to discuss this with you before I take any action because you are a vital part of our company,” Jorah began as he paced in front of Dany, who was sitting on a chair in the office of his store looking perplexed

"I feel it is important for me to discuss this with you before I take any action because you are a vital part of our company," Jorah began as he paced in front of Dany, who was sitting on a chair in the office of his store looking perplexed.

"What company?"

"The Dragons’! We are a small company, but a company nonetheless."

"Oh, okay," Dany replied, hoping he was leading to announcing it was time for a company picnic or something. She really wanted to get home and have dinner, but Jorah had insisted it was important she drop by after the movie she and Missandei had gone to that afternoon.

"As I was saying… you have been there since the beginning. You worked just as hard as I to get the store open, so I feel it’s important that I share things with you as opposed to just make decisions and inform you of them," he continued, then took a deep breath, "I have decided that since we are so busy, I will be hiring someone else to help out. That way you won’t have to work as much, especially when you get… further along… and we will have another set of hands on the busy days. Plus, I am hoping after some time we will be able to leave this person in charge of the store, so when you have school, I don’t have to be working."

Nervously, he looked at Dany, waiting for her reaction. He’d thought long and hard about his decision, since he had gotten the idea that perhaps Dany might not like having someone else in ‘their’ store. He feared that she might view the other employee as someone encroaching on her territory… and in his heart.

Dany’s eyebrow quirked as she wondered if that was the big news, "Okay, sounds cool."

"Yes?" he gasped.

She nodded, "Sure, I’d dig having someone else there. I mean, I need hours still, but you’re right… when I get all big and gross, it’ll be harder for me to climb on ladders to stock… or even be on my feet all day. Plus, if you keep working as much as you’re working, you’re going to kill yourself."

Jorah grinned in relief, "You’re absolutely right!"

"You know, you never say that enough," Dany quipped, before standing up and heading out of the office.

"Perhaps next week you and I could interview people together?" he asked, wanting her involved. Ever since the pregnancy, he’d felt a need to spend time with her and let her know he cared.

Dany gave him a strange look and shrugged, "If you want."

Jorah followed her out into the store, about to offer her a ride home since it was near closing time anyway, and he absolutely didn’t want her walking in the dark, when he saw Jon waiting around.

"Hey," the younger man said, smiling at Dany, "I ran into Missandei… she told me you were here and I was wondering if you needed a ride home… since I’m heading that way anyway."

"Absolutely," Dany grinned, slipping on her coat.

Jon looked up and nodded at Jorah, then asked them both, "Is everything okay?"

"We’re hiring a new employee," Dany informed him in mock seriousness, "It’s possibly the biggest day of our lives and I know I am incredibly moved, but I should be okay."

Jorah rolled his eyes at her mocking of him and grabbed his keys, intent on locking up after them, "Drive carefully… I’ll see you tomorrow, Dany."

"You got it, bye Jorah," she smiled, then walked out the door.

"Bye," Jon said, following her.

Jorah locked the door behind them and watched through the window as Jon held the passenger door of his truck open for Dany. As he watched the way she looked as she told Jon something and laughed, he couldn’t help but notice how perfect they seemed for each other. Anyone who didn’t know the real reason they married would think they were an adorable young couple, just starting out on what was sure to be a long, happy life together.

Shaking his head to stop his thoughts from proceeding any further, Jorah walked back to the cash register and began counting money. Hopefully he could get done quickly, so that he could go home and collapse.

*


	28. Of choices

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know you are all anxious about Jonerys getting together, and it'll happen, but I just wanted to say that while we're starting chapter 28, not a lot of time has gone by. It's been just a couple of months, three, if most, since Dany found out about her pregnancy. 
> 
> Also, Drogo is not a bad guy. He just isn't willing to be a father, which is a turning point for Dany and set into motion Jonerys, but that doesn't mean Drogo's mean. For Dany and Jon to get together, she needs to figure out for herself about them, as a couple. She's so hung up on that thing of first love that she has yet to see herself loving someone else as special and giving and caring as Jon.
> 
> I've said, this is a looong fic. I've drafted until chapter 45 (productive weekend!) but don't be disheartened. Jon and Dany will figure out their feeling for each other, though not without bumps!
> 
> Having said that, this is a Drogo centered chapter. Feel free to skip it.

Drogo walked quickly up the path to the door of the lavish two-story home, relieved that this would be over with. He hated what he’d had to do, but he really hadn’t had another choice. He rang the doorbell and began waiting when he felt a presence. 

Abruptly, the man walked back down the path and reached behind a tall bush to drag out Qhoto. His friend was caught off guard and gave Drogo a frightened look.

"What are you doing here?"

"Seeing what *you* are doing here," Qhoto answered, "You have been acting so strange, Drogo, I had to see what was wrong."

"Nothing is wrong, would you just-"

Drogo was interrupted by the front door opening and the man who could best be described as Malakho’s butler standing there.

Sighing, he said, "Malakho’s expecting me."

"Yes," the man replied, "And your friend?"

"Just tagging along. Don’t worry about it," Drogo said as he walked back to the door.

The man reluctantly allowed them in and led them to a large room down a hall where a man who almost looked human, except for the fact that he appeared hairless and had a slight green tinge to his skin was waiting.

"Ah, Drogo, how good it is to see you," Malakho said jovially.

Drogo nodded, "Malakho, this is Qhoto."

The watched politely shook Malakho’s hand, all the while wondering exactly what he was.  
"Hey, I’m Malakho, The Favor Man," Malakho said proudly.

"The Favor Man?" Qhoto inquired.

"Yeah, you need a favor, you come to me. I specialize in trading them."

"Oh," Qhoto replied, his eyebrows raised as he grew more curious.

Malakho nodded, "Take your friend Drogo, here. He comes to me, says he needs a car. I get him to tell me exactly what kind he wants… you know, sports car, family car, whatever, and then I see who else needs a favor that might be able to help Drogo get his car. Well, there’s a certain fellow who owns a car dealership, and *he* needs someone to chase down this jerk who owes him quite a bit of money. Since I *am* the favor man, I get Drogo to do the favor for Kovarro, and then Kovarro does the favor for Drogo. Kovarro’s got his money, Drogo… you’ve got your car."

Drogo had been trying to think up a convincing lie until he noticed Malakho holding up a set of keys. Wordlessly, he took the keys and nodded, "Thank you."

"No, thank you," Malakho grinned, "You’re very… persuasive. Kovarro was quite happy with the results. Now, shall we go see your new car?"

Drogo and Qhoto followed as Malakho led them down a few halls and out a door to the back of the house where there was a private driveway. Parked in the driveway was a brand-new red Honda CR-V.

"As you can see, it has four doors like you wanted. It’s an automatic, bluetooth, audio system, and Kovarro assures me it’s good for someone with a child. Are you pleased?"

Drogo nodded and walked closer to the car, deciding it would definitely work, "It’s perfect… thank you."

Seeing how satisfied Drogo was, Malakho decided to take a shot at getting Drogo to work with him again. After all, Kovarro was one of his wealthier customers and his commission had been quite ample. If he could get him to work for him more often, it would definitely be good for business.

"I want you to know that if you ever need a favor again, I am more than eager to help you out. Anything you need, I am sure I can get you."

"Uh, that’s okay, I don’t really need anything anymore."

"No? You know, I don’t just have to give you objects as a favor… I can do you the favor of getting you money. You’re very good at what you do, Drogo, and I have a lot of customers who wouldn’t mind… donating funds."

Drogo thought it over for a moment. As much as he hated moonlighting as a goon, it was a very profitable job. This car alone had to be worth a whole lot more than what he’d make on the end of the month at the gym. And even though his ‘day job’ was a more dignified, he’d been letting Jiqhi get him jobs that focused more on getting paid so that he could make more money for the baby, and he hated it. At least this way he could make a lot more money a lot faster. Hell, after one job he would have enough to pay all her medical bills for the pregnancy.

"I’ll let you know if I do," he finally told Malakho.

"Excellent," Malakho grinned, then withdrew a paper from the inner pocket of his silk suit jacket, "Now, there is just the matter of the proper paperwork. Drogo, I realize I don’t know your last name."

"Actually… can you put the owner’s name down as Daenerys Targaryen?"

Qhoto gave Drogo a look of shock. He’d been quietly observing the exchange up until then, and had a lot of questions already, but now he was dying to ask Drogo what on Earth was going on. He used his self control, though, and waited while Malakho filled out the papers and gave them to Drogo, then left the two of them alone.

"Drogo… what is going on? Why do you need this car? Are you giving it to Dany?"

"The short story is Dany’s pregnant, the baby is mine, but I’m not going to be involved in it’s life. She needs a car, though, so I came to Malakho because I knew he could get me a good one a lot faster than if I saved up for it working through the fitness center Oh, and please keep this between us. I don’t want anyone to know… especially not Jiqhi."

Qhoto stared at him, jaw dropped, before replying, "I really think I need the long version of the story."

Drogo nodded, "Tell you what… I need to drive this to Dragonstone. Take my car there too so that I can have a ride home and I’ll use the two hours it’ll take us to get back here to tell you everything… with the agreement that it stays between us."

Qhoto nodded, knowing he really didn’t have any choice. After hearing what he had… there was no way he could go on not knowing all.

*  
Jorah was awakened from his deep, dreamless, desperately needed sleep by a pounding on his front door. He was about to wonder who would be visiting so late when he saw that his bedside clock only said it was half past eleven. He’d come home and gone straight to bed, so he must have slept for over two hours.

Wearily, he climbed out of bed and slipped on a robe before climbing down his stairs and rushing to answer the door before one of his neighbors called the police. As soon as he had all the locks undone, he opened the door and was surprised to find Drogo and Qhoto standing there.

"Drogo? What’s going on?" he asked, figuring for Drogo to be in Dragonstone, either something had happened, or was about to happen.

"It’s okay," the man assured him, "Can we come in?"

Jorah nodded and stepped aside so that the both of them could enter his apartment. Drogo led them to the living room and rubbed his hands together, trying to think of a way to do this that would ensure Jorah’ cooperation.

"Drogo, does he know?"

"Know what?"

"That-" Qhoto began, then stopped himself, realizing that he’d already broken his promise of secrecy to Drogo, "Uh.. nothing."

"He knows," Drogo told the man, then turned to Jorah, "I had to tell him that Dany’s pregnant and it’s my baby."

"Yes, but he didn’t tell me how this could be possible or anything else," Qhoto added.

"I’ll tell you on the way home," the man reminded him.

"Which brings us to you being here," Jorah said, "And why is that?"

"I have a car for Daenerys."

Floored, Jorah sat down in a chair, "A car? Where on Earth did you get the money for that?"

"It doesn’t matter-" Drogo started to say, but was interrupted by Qhoto.

"It’s rather sordid, most intriguing," Qhoto announced, taking a seat on the couch and crossing his legs, "Drogo made some sort of deal with a gangster, but not a bad gangster, it appears. He didn’t try to kill me."

Jorah looked from Qhoto to Drogo and back again, hoping one would answer his question, "A deal with a gangster? What sort of deal?"

"From what I gathered, Drogo managed to find someone who owed *another* gangster money. Drogo got his money and that man got Drogo a car, which he needed to give to Daenerys."

Drogo sighed, "Look, I know you probably hate how I got it… I’m not too proud of it myself. But it’s not like I have that kind of money just sitting around, and if it takes a little lascivious work to get something for Dany that she needs… I’m willing to do it. Besides, even though my methods of getting it were unorthodox, it *is* completely legal. I have the pink slip and all that."

Jorah nodded, "I suppose I understand that. I have seen a few of those disgusting talk shows and I have heard how some fathers come up with all sorts of excuses not to help out, so this is rather… refreshing. Now, how are you going to give this to Dany?"

"Well, whatever I do, I am going to need your help," Drogo answered.

"Of course, because I’m not already stuck in the middle of this mess between you and Dany enough," Jorah remarked sarcastically.

"Come on, Jorah… you yourself said she needs a car, so this is good for her. You also know all too well that if I go to her house right now and try to hand her the keys, she’ll throw them in my face. Hell, you haven’t even worked up the nerve to tell her about the checking account yet."

"What checking account?" Qhoto broke in.

"Later," Drogo reminded him, "Look, Jorah, how about you just pretend it’s a gift from you. Let it be her gift for getting a license."

"And where did I get the money for this new vehicle? Since there won’t be any payments for her or I to make, she’s going to have to believe I just paid thousands of dragons for a brand new car that I am not even using?"

Drogo shrugged, "Would she believe you inherited money?"

Jorah sighed, "What choice do I have?"


	29. Of surprises

"Er, Dany, do you know if we have any Moonstones?" Jorah asked as he wandered around the store with a giggling fifteen-year-old girl. On one hand, he thought it would probably be a bad idea to sell someone a stone that could make someone fall in love with her if used properly… on the other, he doubted she would be able to actually accomplish that much. Besides, she was driving him insane and she insisted she wanted something to make this boy realize he couldn’t live without her, so he had to do *something*.

"Yeah, they should be over on the shelf next to the crystals," Dany replied as she rang up someone’s purchase. 

Jorah managed to find the girl a stone and send her off to the cash register in time to deal with some hippie-type complaining about the cruelty of having animal eyes for sale. Lucky for him, he managed to convince her after ten minutes that all the animal products were from animals that had cancer so they were dying anyway. Pacified, she left him alone so that he could go rest on the stool behind the counter.  
"Good Lord, it’s Thursday afternoon, how can things be this busy?"

Dany shrugged and smiled at him as she restocked the tissue paper she used to wrap merchandise, "School just let out… besides, this is just a mini-rush. Things will calm back down in less than half an hour, I bet."

Jorah, for one, hoped she was right. At least they’d already had several people fill out applications for the new opening and he’d only put the help wanted sign out that morning. He’d have to see if he could line up their interviews Monday afternoon when things would be slow.

Dany leaned against the cash register and tugged at the waistband of her pants, frowning, "God, I barely managed to squeeze into these this morning."

"Perhaps you need to go buy some new clothes… what do they call them?"

"Maternity clothing," Dany sighed, "I can’t believe I need maternity clothing."

"Well, that is what happens when one gets pregnant," Jorah reminded her pointedly as he stood up and started walking towards someone who looked like they needed help.

Dany rolled her eyes, "Thanks, brother from another mother."

With his back turned, Jorah allowed himself to smile. He was far too shy to tell her so, but he loved the idea of Dany acting like he was her older brother. The thought brought him back to the car. He really needed to give it to her soon. It was bad enough that he hadn’t told her about the checking account, but Drogo had even come up with a good lie for him to tell her about the car… so he had no excuse not to do it. Maybe he could give her a ride home that night, but instead take her to his apartment to show her the car.

Just as Dany said, twenty minutes later, there were only a few customers milling about, giving Dany and Jorah the chance to take a break. Dany started sipping water as Jorah recounted his amusing tale of a most clueless customer he’d had that morning when Tyrion Lannister, a friend of Jorah’s from back in the day, with whom they’d occasionally see, marched in and slammed his hand down on the counter.

"I’ll take it," he announced, grinning at them.

"Excuse me?" Jorah asked, wondering what he was talking about.

"The job," he replied, "You have a job opening…I will take it."

"Er, I.. well, I don’t think that," Jorah stammered, trying to think of a good excuse not to hire him.

Dany turned and looked up at him before saying quietly, so nobody besides him would hear, "He’s actually pretty good. He could easily learn where everything goes."

"You really think we should hire him?"

Dany shrugged, "I don’t think it would be as bad as it sounds."

Jorah nodded, then looked at Tyrion, "All right, you’re hired."

"On one condition," Dany added, then whispered something in Jorah ear that made him blush. Upon his insistence that she say it, she continued, "You can’t talk about sex at all. No mentions of your sex life with anyone, no questions about my sex life with anyone… no mentions of sex at all."

Tyrion bit his bottom lip, trying to decide if he could handle that. After a moment, she nodded, "It’s a deal."

Jorah quickly found that Dany was right. Tyrion began working at the cash register so that Dany could put away all of their new shipment and Jorah could attend to his owner duties. When they didn’t have customers, Dany would show their new employee how the merchandise was arranged, as well as everything he could possibly need in the back of the store.

He did so well, that after a few hours, Jorah decided it would be okay if Tyrion was left to man the store alone for a little while, so that he could give Dany her surprise. After he’d finished putting in their order for the next week, Jorah walked back out into the store and approached the counter where Dany and Tyrion were talking.

"You really recommend them? I always thought those books were kind of…. Cheesy," Dany commented.

Tyrion shook his head, "They aren’t ‘Moby Dick’ by any means, but they are so entertaining. I’ll bring you one tomorrow."

"Thanks, I could use something fun to do on Friday and Saturday nights, since I’m getting too fat for all my clothes and I can’t go hang out or anything," Dany replied.

Tyrion looked down at Dany’s stomach, "Yeah, you are getting kind of chubby, but on the bright side, you have a good excuse."

"Tyrion, would you mind if I stole Dany for a while? There’s something I needed to show her that’s… away. Things should stay pretty slow for a while and I think you can handle it," Jorah said.

"He trusts me," Tyrion grinned at Dany, then said to Jorah, "You can count on me!"

"Good," Jorah said, grabbing his and Dany’s coats, "We’ll be back in a bit."

Dany took her proffered coat and followed him out the door, "What did you want to show me?"

"It’s a surprise."

"Ooh, I like surprises," she smiled, rubbing her hands together.

"I think you will find this surprise is very likeable," Jorah replied, opening the passenger door of his car for her.

"Can I have a hint?"

"No, it’s not that far from here so you won’t have to wait too long."

"Oh good, I don’t know if you can tell, but patience really isn’t one of my virtues."

"I suspected as much," Jorah joked.

For the rest of the ride, there was a comfortable silence. Dany was content to observe the passing scenery while she wondered what exactly her surprise was. Jorah mentally practiced what he was going to tell her when he gave her the car, hoping she would believe him… and that she’d like the car.

At last, Jorah pulled into his parking spot at his apartment and got out of the car. Dany quickly followed, eager to see what the big deal was. When her boss only walked a few feet and stopped in front of the car parked next to his, Dany frowned.

"What are you doing?"

Jorah pointed at the car and smiled, "Showing you your surprise."

Dany’s jaw dropped as she actually looked at the car and saw a brand new Honda CR-V. It was absolutely perfect; a cute car that had four doors and would work well when she had the baby. Looking back at Jorah, she said, "I don’t understand… you got me a car?"

"Yes… you needed one, and now I don’t have to worry about you being able to afford a *good* one, along with everything else for the baby."

"It’s too much!"

"Don’t worry, I inherited a large sum of money. The car is all paid for."

"I can’t let you spend that on me!"

"Why not?" Jorah argued, "Dany, you are like a sister to me, you know that. Would it be so hard to believe if a brother inherited some money and spent some of it on a nice car for his sister, who really needed it? It’s practically all in the family."

Dany shrugged, "I’m not really your sister, you aren’t obligated."

"No, I’m not *obligated*, but I wanted to."  
Dany was quiet for a moment before giving her friend a big grin and enveloping him a big hug, "Thank you *so* much!"

"You’re very welcome," Jorah smiled, hugging her back until he realized she was crying. He pulled back and gave her a concerned look, "Are you okay?"

Dany wiped at her tears and nodded, "Yeah… I’m just so happy."

"So happy that you’re crying?"

"Hey, I’m a pregnant woman, I have hormones!"

Jorah pulled the keys Drogo had given him out of his pocket and handed them to Dany. "Here are your keys… the little black… thing… is your remote. When you want to get in, you just push ‘unlock’ once and it opens the driver’s door. If you push it twice, it will lock all the doors. When you get out of the car, push ‘lock’ once to lock all the doors, and twice to activate all the alarms. You can also push that one that looks like a horn to sound the alarm. I believe it’s called the panic button… it’s for if you were being robbed or something. The one that looks like the trunk opens the trunk," he instructed, repeating everything Drogo had told him the night before when he’d shown him the car after Jorah had agreed to give it to Dany.

Dany grinned and hit ‘unlock’ twice, "Shall we take this baby for a spin?"

*

Jorah was pleasantly surprised to see that Jon hadn’t been fudging the truth to make Dany happy when he’d said she was a good driver. She hardly scared him at all as she took the long way back to the store. He insisted that it would be fine if she took the night off, since they’d be closing up in a couple of hours and he had Tyrion there to assist.

Dany was caught up in the excitement of her new car, and had a strong desire to show it off, so she was all too happy to goof around for a few hours before picking Jorah up after he was done for the night and give him a ride back to his place.

As he walked back in and found everything under control, Jorah contemplated calling Drogo to let him know. He just wasn’t sure exactly how the man fit into Dany’s life presently. Was he just doing things to help her, or was he a secret observer?

Either way, Jorah hoped their clandestine dealings wouldn’t come back to huncle him… he just might lose Dany forever.


	30. Of desires

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There you have it. Jonerys little smut!!

Jon looked through the mail as he walked from the mailbox, back to the apartment. There was nothing of interest, which was kind of a bummer. He’d just gotten off work and was pretty wired. Of course, he was managing to pull a few nine-to-six shifts a week now that he had a family… one of the benefits of being a married man, even though it meant doing a lot of paperwork instead of going on watch. Unfortunately, all of his friends still had to work that night and Dany wouldn’t be home for hours.

He was nearly to the apartment when a car pulled up next to the sidewalk and began beeping. Jon frowned as he racked his brain, trying to remember if any of his friends drove a red CR-V. A few seconds later, the driver’s window slid down and he saw Dany smiling up at him.

"Jorah got me a present," she announced gleefully.

Jon’s eyes widened, "He got you a new car?"

Dany nodded, "Yup."

"Totally new? This isn’t even a year old or anything?"

"It still has the new car smell and everything," she said.

"Wow, this is great," he replied sincerely, "This takes care of one huge problem for you."

"You’re not kidding. Jorah says he got an inheritance so he just paid for it all at once… I don’t have to worry about car payments at all."

Jon leaned down to peer in the windows, "Very, very nice car, Dany. My father is an avid believer in buying Westerosi, but I’ve always liked this car. It’s perfect for you… four doors and a good backseat for the baby."

"It is," she agreed, "So, you hungry? I could take you out to dinner."

"Wow, I get to ride in a new car and eat with a gorgeous woman," Jon teased, "Must be my lucky day. Just give me a minute to drop this stuff off and lock the door, okay?"

"Sure, I’ll make a u-turn," Dany answered, full of excitement.

Jon grinned as he watched her pull away from the curb to make her oh-so-thrilling u-turn before continuing on his way to the apartment. After dropping the mail on the dining room table, he grabbed his leather coat from his room and headed back to the door. As he walked back by the kitchen, Jon got an idea and went and pulled something out of one of the doors before walking out and locking the door.

"What’s that?" Dany asked, seeing a small black object in Jon’s hand as he climbed into the passenger seat.

Smiling, Jon handed it to her, "It’s your very own garage door opener. You know how they gave us two, since it’s a two-car garage and I had the extra in the kitchen drawer."

"Oh yeah," she replied, "Thank you. Wow.. I now own a car… doors... windows… an engine… and a garage door opener!"

Jon just grinned as he watched how ecstatic Dany was about everything. After she’d hooked the opener on her visor, Dany began driving slowly through the apartment complex.

"So, what do you feel like?"

"How about that restaurant in Driftmark?"

"That cute place we went with all the guys the night before we went to Oldtown?" she asked.

Jon nodded, "That’s the one… half an hour from here."

Dany took the hint and nodded fervently, "Sounds fabulous!

*

"Man, I need a shower," Pyp complained as he walked with several other soldiers towards the elevator after a long, tiring watch.

Jon grinned, "I could use one too. Maybe I’ll just borrow your bathroom here."

"Good idea," Tormund laughed, "You go home smelling like you are and Dany will kick your sorry ass right out of bed."

While the rest of the guys laughed, Jon rolled his eyes and secretly wished that were the case. Unfortunately, Dany wouldn’t care what he smelled like because she was most likely sound asleep and wouldn’t even be in the same room as him.

As they all got in the elevator, Pyp asked, "You working tomorrow night?"

"Nope, I’m coming to the party, though," he replied.

"Cool, I was just making sure that Dany would be there. Even if you had to work… we wanted Dany," Tormund informed him, "We try not to go to your place too much, so she won’t feel obligated to wait on us and do all the hosting duties, but we definitely miss her."

"You know, I’m not too sure she’ll be in the mood to come," Jon said regretfully, "She hasn’t said she won’t, but I haven’t mentioned it for a week or so… and she’s been kind of weird lately."

"Weird? Weird how?" Pyp asked.  
"Yeah, I thought you said she was great," Tormund said, "You told me she was so happy about her old man… or sort of her old man, getting her that car."

"She was… is… she loves the car. Dany’s fine, she is just pregnant and part of getting pregnant is getting bigger and she’s used to being tiny so that’s upsetting her. She can’t fit in a lot of her clothes, so unless you want her coming in sweat pants…"

"Oh, we don’t care what she wears, we just want her here!" Pyp assured him, "You have to bring her. We’ll make her feel better. I’m sure she’s still quite tiny."

"You didn’t call her fat, did you, man?" Tormund asked, "Because if you did, I have to kick your ass."

"Of course I didn’t call her fat! She’s not fat. She’s pregnant and is still nowhere near fat," Jon replied exasperated. As amusing as he sometimes found the guys’ adoration of Dany, they got to be on the annoying side at times.

*

Jon sighed and rubbed his temples; his worst nightmare was coming true. 

Okay, that was an exaggeration, but ever since his discussion with the guys, he’d worried Dany would declare she was not going to the party. As predicted, she’d already been in bed when he had gotten home at two that morning, so he couldn’t ask her then. By the time he had woken up, she’d was at work already. As soon as she’d gotten home, he’d cheerfully reminded her that they were supposed to leave at a quarter to seven for the party and Dany had pouted and told him to go without her before heating up the leftovers and taking it to her room so she could eat it in bed while reading some book Tyrion had given her.

Jon had tried giving her some time to change her mind, but gave up after twenty minutes. Then he’d gone in to her room and repeatedly assured her that she wasn’t fat and the guys *really* wanted her to come. When that hadn’t worked, he began going through her closet.

"How about this?" he asked, holding up a flowered skirt, "It’s stretchy, I bet you can still fit in it."

Dany glanced up and shook her head, "I tried it on Thursday. When are you going to give up? I told you I have tried *all* my clothes on and the only things that fit *and* I can breathe in are my overalls and sweats. I have some clothes at my uncle’s that are loose-fitting, but I’m not going to get them."

"Wear your overalls! You look fine as it is," he assured her. Okay, the black turtleneck with the denim overalls really wasn’t the type of thing anyone else at the party would probably be wearing, but he still thought she looked gorgeous.

"Well, I would, but I’m afraid *every* other girl there will have the same outfit on," she replied sarcastically, wishing he’d just give up and let her get back to her book.

"Dany, please," Jon said quietly, giving her his most pitiful look.

Not expecting him to go so low, Dany looked up again and felt a pang of guilt, "Why do you want me to go so badly? It’s perfectly fine for you to go and me to stay home and veg."

"No… it’s not," he replied, "The guys want *you* there. It’s more like you are invited and I am your guest. If you don’t go, I might as well not go, because they’ll be on my case all night."

Dany’s resolve started to waver, "You’re just saying that…"

"No, I’m not," he insisted, "Please? I really want to go, Dany."

Dany sighed and nodded, marking her spot in the novel with a bookmark before climbing out of bed, "I’m still not changing."

"That’s fine," Jon said, a triumphant grin on his face.

*

"Want something to eat?" Jon asked, then cringed at the glare Dany shot his way, "Well, they have carrots and stuff… not all fattening foods."

"It doesn’t matter… I’m not eating any different foods or more food than normal… I just magically gained a ton of weight."

Jon smiled, "It’s not magic… you’re pregnant."

Dany rolled her eyes good-naturedly and patted him on the thigh, "Go have fun. You were looking forward to this… don’t let me spoil the evening for you."

"You just want to sit on this couch all by yourself tonight?"

Shrugging, Dany asked, "Is there something wrong with that?"

"Tell you what, you give me *one* dance and then I will let you sit here all alone… if that’s what you really want."

"It is what I want, except for the dancing part," she replied, "Besides, I thought you hated dancing."

"Who told you that?"

"Tormund."

"Well, I can slow dance," he informed her.

Dany gave him an incredulous look, "We’ve been here an hour and all I hear is fast-paced stuff."  
Jon stood up and held out his hand, "Trust me… we can have a slow song."

Sighing, Dany took his hand and let him pull her up and lead her out to the dance floor. She saw him signal to the DJ and the next thing she knew, Adele’s voice floated out of the speaker as ‘To make you feel my love’ began playing and Jon pulled her closer.

Dany tried to ignore the words of the song, ignore the way she felt being pressed up against Jon. She tried to ignore how *right* it felt. Giving up, she closed her eyes and rested her head against his chest, letting herself pretend, just for a few moments, that her faux life was real.

Jon tightened his arms around Dany’s slight form as he felt her lie her head on his chest. It felt wonderful, being like this with her. He knew, without a doubt, that this was the way he wanted to spend the rest of his life. It didn’t matter if his career was a success, if her baby wasn’t his, nothing mattered as long as he got to hold her in his arms.

The song ended all too soon and another fast one was soon playing. Reluctantly, the two of them pulled apart and shared shy smiles. As much as Jon had wanted to come and hang out with all his friends, he knew that if she asked him in that moment to go home, there was no way he could say no. She had him wrapped around her little finger, and lucky for him, she didn’t even know it.

"Let’s go get something to drink," he suggested, forgetting all about his promise to let her plant herself on the couch.

Dany smiled and began to nod, also forgetting that she was supposed to be having a miserable time, despite the fact that she’d had a dozen gorgeous guys fawning over her upon her arrival. All she knew was Jon was there… and being with Jon sounded great.

"Jon!"

The both of them were startled out of their reverie by the presence of a tall brunette at Jon’s side.  
Caught off guard, Jon slowly smiled and said, "Val, hi."

Dany stood by awkwardly as she watched the brunette reach over and hug Jon. Immediately, she felt completely inadequate. This other girl had long, shiny hair that was all in place. She had a tight black dress, that she filled out quite effectively, something Dany couldn’t have done even before she’d had a baby-belly.

In short, she was absolutely gorgeous. The kind of girl that most guys would kill to get with. And she was all over Dany’s husband that had been told numerous times that he was free to do whatever he liked with other women.

"I was talking to Edd, and he told me you moved out! You got your own place, huh?" Val asked, and Dany could tell by her grin that she had some wonderful ideas on how to take advantage of the fact that Jon had a private residence.  
Feeling like an idiot, Dany slid away, heading anywhere that would be out of their sight. She shouldn’t let it bother her, since Jon was just a friend, upon her insistence, but it still felt like her heart was being ripped from her chest. Love certainly sucked.

Jon saw Dany walking away as he pried Val off of him and tried to think of a cool way to stop her. It wasn’t that he didn’t like Val; she seemed pretty nice and she was very beautiful. The thing was, she was far from his type. He liked girls with a little bit of… resistance against casual sex on a regular basis. He enjoyed being in a monogamous relationship and making love. Even though every time she saw him, Val was on him, Jon knew if he ever did sleep with her, it would be over. Her attraction was simply because he didn’t drool over her like every other guy.

"Who was that?" Val asked, "I mean, a overalls? She looked like a farmer."

Jon turned and have her a dangerous look, "That was my wife, and she looks absolutely beautiful."

From ten feet away, Edd rolled his eyes, having witnessed the entire exchange as soon as Val had gone up to Jon. As soon as he’d heard that girl was there, he knew the night would be interesting. Val was like a dog in heat when it came to Jon and things couldn’t have gone better if he’d planned it. Well, maybe Jon wouldn’t have said that last part if Edd had his way, but the damage done on Dany’s end was great.

And if he could add a little to that damage, all the better.

Casually, Edd followed the way Dany had gone, into the kitchen. He found the blonde sitting at the table, staring at her hands.

"Came to escape the ‘Jon and Val Sexcapades,’ huh?" he asked, sitting down across from her and smiling.

Dany looked up, surprised to see Edd being friendly with her, "What?"

"Oh, Jon and Val. You should have seen him the first time he laid eyes on her…. took months but they were very close to starting something, until… well, you know," Edd lied, "Val hasn’t given up on it, though, it appears, so maybe something will happen after all. I mean, Jon *is* free to do whatever he wants with anybody else, right?"

"Yeah, right," Dany answered quietly, trying not to cry, "It’s none of my business."

*

"There you are," Jon said, relieved, "I’ve been looking all over for you. Aren’t you cold out here?"  
Dany looked up at him from her spot on the back porch floor, "Nope, it feels good."

She was kind of surprised to see him, since it had only been twenty minutes or so since she’d left him with Val. A few minutes after Edd had joined her in the kitchen, she’d told him she needed fresh air and had gone out on the porch alone. Dany had been sitting there, getting her head together with the intent to find a ride home since Jon was sure to be… occupied… for a long time.

"It is getting warmer," Jon commented, leading against the railing, "Looks like we’re getting into spring weather at last."

"Yeah, and then Summer," Dany frowned, "I remember someone at the doctor’s office telling me how horrible it is to be pregnant in the Summertime. It’s already hot and it makes you way more uncomfortable. I’m due August 19th, so I’ll be pregnant most of the Summer."

"Well, we have air conditioning in the apartment and I’ll be willing to fan you if you want," Jon said, smiling when he achieved a small smile from her. Clearing his throat, Jon added, "Look, I wanted you to know… Val and I… we’re not…"

"Hey, you don’t owe me any explanation. I already told you that you can do what you want with whomever you want."

"But Dany, I don’t want to do *anything* with her!" he protested.

"Then why did Edd… oh," Dany said quietly, realizing what had happened.

"What did Edd do?" Jon sighed, preparing himself to want to kill his friend.

"He tried to be a good friend to you," Dany said, giving him a sad smile as she stood up, "Are you going to go back to the party?"

Jon shook his head, "I don’t feel like it anymore. Want to go home?"

Dany looked up at him closely, trying to gauge whether or not he was lying to make her happy, "Are you sure?"

"I can honestly say that there’s no place I’d rather be right now."

*

Dany was quiet most of the way home, until the silence got to Jon and he made her tell him what she was thinking. He regretted it, though, when she informed him that she’d been considering naming her baby Jaeharys if it was a boy, after a character in one of her stories. The name made Jon cringe, and he vowed to make her change her mind if she stuck with it, for the sake of her poor unborn child.

When they walked into the apartment, Jon couldn’t help but notice how downhearted Dany appeared and it broke his heart. Over the past month, he’d seen her go through many mood swings and cry a whole lot… either from a long distance commercial, a movie on Netflix, or just the fact that they were out of orange juice. However, this was different. It wasn’t just hormones.  
Dany was planning on heading to her room and burying herself under the covers until she had to go to work the next morning when Jon grabbed her shoulders and made her stiffen in surprise.

Turning her around, Jon gave her a serious look, "What’s wrong?"

Dany knew that a simple ‘nothing’ wouldn’t work; Jon would know she was lying and she could tell he was in the kind of mood where he’d pester her into talking. Sighing, she looked down and blurted out the part of the reason for her foul mood that wouldn’t be completely embarrassing, "I feel awful. I know that I haven’t really gained all that much weight and I’m not even showing, it’s just all my clothes are too tight, but, I still feel gross. And then tonight at that party… all those girls.. they used to be me. A few months ago, I was one of the people who had a great time dancing and talking to people, wearing cute clothes, and not having to worry about… all the stuff I have to worry about. But now I’m not those girls… I’m disgusting."

"Dany, you are *so* far from disgusting," Jon replied vehemently, "You’re… you’re beautiful. I know that you feel pretty bad right now, but it’s going to pass, I know it. If you want, I’ll call my sister and she’ll tell you."

Dany shook her head, "God, I feel like such a… whiner. It’s like one moment I’m all upset because I’m gaining weight… another moment I almost feel happy because I’m starting to have physical evidence of the baby… and then I hate myself because I’m sitting around moping that I put on a few pounds since I am *pregnant* and I’m not even appreciating how wonderful you are. But I always feel disgusting, so I’m sticking by that."

Jon stroked his hand down the side of her face as she looked up at him. Quietly, he repeat, "You are *beautiful*. I want you to believe me. Do I have to prove it to you?"

Dany smiled sadly, "I’m stubborn as all seven hells, you couldn’t prove it to me if you tried."

He thought it over for a moment before taking a chance and saying, "Let me try, then."

"What?" Dany asked, giving him a strange look.

Jon’s response was to dip his head down and kiss her lovingly, caressing her lips with his own until she parted them and admitted his tongue entrance to explore her mouth. After a moment, when the need for oxygen became too great, he pulled back and looked down at her bewildered face.

"I love your lips. They’re so soft and full and wonderful…. definitely the best lips I have ever laid eyes on. Your eyes are amazing. I love how they change color when you wear certain things. No matter what, they are always beautiful eyes, and so expressive. You make me believe that your eyes are the window to your soul because I can look in yours and want to hold you while you cry, hug you and be as happy as you are… all of it. Your whole face… I’ve never seen a better face. If that face could be the last thing I see before I fall asleep, and the first thing I see when I wake up for the rest of my life, I’d die a happy man. You’re absolutely perfect, I swear. Yet there are times when you’re even more beautiful… like when you’re happy or right now… your cheeks are flushed and you’re looking at me with such wonder…. I don’t know how you do it, but you go from perfect to even better."

Dany smiled shyly, not sure whether to be embarrassed by his attention or to be flattered to hear such compliments coming from *him*.

Jon took an even bigger chance and slowly ran his hands down her arms until her small hands were clasped in his much larger ones. Tenderly, he turned them around and took a few steps backwards towards his bedroom, hoping she would get the idea, "Do you suppose I could try to convince you even more?"

Dany’s eyes darted to his bedroom door as she realized what he was asking. Seeing the vulnerable look on his face, she wondered how she could say no to the man who not only had said some of the sweetest things to her since Drogo, but the man she already had wanted to be with, both sexually and emotionally.

So she didn’t.

Nodding her head slightly, she whispered, "Okay."

Jon released one of her hands and turned to walk calmly towards his bedroom, pulling Dany with him. Once in the room he turned on only the dimmest light so that he could still see her, yet have a romantic atmosphere. He lead her to the bed where they sat side by side with their faces towards each other. Jon took the opportunity to kiss her again, a little more passionately, deeper than before. His hand moved to the side of the neck, gently stroking her sensitive skin as their mouths mated.

Slowly, they parted and looked one another in the eyes. Smiling adoringly, Jon continued by running his fingers through her hair, "Your hair is like spun silk, and just as perfect as your face. It’s like you reinvented blonde to me."

Dany smiled self-consciously as he lifted her hand and kissed her fingers while he carried on with his purpose, "Even your hands are beautiful."

Knowing what he had planned next, Jon moved his hands to the latches on her overalls and looked Dany in the eye before asking, "Are you sure? You can change your mind… I’ll understand."

Dany smiled wider before lifting her hands and brushing his away so that she could undo the latches. The front of the overalls fell down to her waist and Dany started tugging at the bottom of her turtleneck to pull it over her head, but found Jon’s hands covering hers.

"Can I?"

At Dany’s nod, Jon gingerly pulled the garment over her head, revealing her lacy black bra that was filled quite sufficiently with her creamy breasts. Sensing she was a bit uncomfortable being in this state of undress, he asked, "Would you like me to take off my shirt?"  
"Yeah," she said softly, almost as if she’d lost her voice.

Jon pulled his sweater over his head and tossed it to the ground beside Dany’s turtleneck before standing up and kicking off his shoes and socks and pulling off his pants, leaving him in a pair of boxers. When he was done, Dany timidly stood as well, removing her sneakers and socks and letting the overalls fall to the ground. With both of them only wearing underwear, Jon got back on the bed, but this time laid down and patted the spot next to him. Dany obeyed, lying down with her head on the pillows and Jon on his side next to her.

He began placing hot kisses on her shoulders and collarbone, telling her how beautiful her lean, warrior body was before he reached under her and managed to undo the clasp of her bra. Making a point to look her in the eye as he pulled the material away.

"Your breasts are… perfect," he told her, gently massaging her flesh, "They’re soft… full… flawless."

Dany blushed, "You don’t have to keep going."

"Yes I do," he insisted, "There’s still more beautiful parts to you that I haven’t mentioned and I can’t rest until I know that you know you’re beautiful."

Dany laughed, "I believe you."

"Yeah?"

She nodded, running her hands through his hair, "You’ve made me feel very beautiful."

"I don’t know, I like to be thorough," he teased.

Dany gave him a serious look, "Nothing would make me feel more beautiful right now than for you to make love to me."

He swallowed and replied hoarsely, "Are you sure?"

"I already told you yes," she grinned, pulling his head down so that she could kiss him and let him know exactly how much she wanted him.

The next few moments were filled with ardent kissing, yanking off underwear, and tender touches until the both of them were nude and frantic to be as close as possible to each other. Settling between her thighs, Jon’s fingers found her sex damp with her excitement and need for him. Just to be sure, he slid one finger inside her, gently massaging making Dany moan and close her eyes. A few seconds later he added a second digit and was rewarded by Dany arching her back up and groaning loudly. After just a moment, she cried out as her body shook with tremors from her orgasm.

As soon as she came down, Jon slowly slid his length inside her, using all his willpower not to immediately begin thrusting rapidly inside her incredibly tight heat. He couldn’t believe anything could feel so heavenly, but then again, Dany had a way of changing everything as he knew it.

Dany was overcome with desire as Jon slowly plunged in and out of her in a steady pattern. She soon began thrusting her hips up to meet his, kissing his shoulder and gently scratching her nails down his back as the waves of pleasure continually crashed through her. As she once again reached her release, one thought echoed in her mind.

Dany felt complete.


	31. Of morning after

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Do I hear angst? Because that's what we're getting!

When she awoke the next morning, Dany was unaware of where exactly she was, or what the strange weight across her stomach was. Looking around, she saw Jon sound asleep next to her in *his* bed, with his arm over her belly. The events from the night before came back to her, making her body flush as the images of the two of them making love flashed though her mind.

However, as content and sated she’d felt in Jon’s arms as they’d gone to sleep the night before, with the morning came so many doubts and regrets. Jon had truly made her feel beautiful, wanted… and not entirely inadequate when compared to girls like Val. She’d allowed herself to get caught up in that, as well as her own secret desire to have more than a platonic relationship with him.

It had been foolish, of course, she decided, as she tried to figure out what she was going to do. She’d been weak, and now things were messed up forever. The night before, Dany wasn’t sure whether she’d disillusioned herself into thinking Jon would play husband and wife with her and they’d have a tidy little life together, or if she just hadn’t cared, but now she had a whole new problem.

She wasn’t sure how Jon would act when he woke up, but Dany doubted he’d act like it was nothing and tell her he wanted to go back to the way things were like she was sure he honestly felt. Jon was too much of a gentleman to do that, but she wasn’t going to let him suffer just because he’d gotten a little too caught up in the moment while trying to make *her* feel better. It was no wonder he’d slept with her. After months of being celibate *because* of her… he was probably pretty… in need of release.

Sighing, Dany carefully extracted herself from under Jon’s arm and grabbed her shoes and clothes off the floor before creeping out of the room. Pretending it never happened may not be the most mature or effective solution, but it was the only one Dany could come up with. Perhaps it would work and neither of them would ever speak of it again. 

*

Jon awoke alone in bed and was disconcerted for a few seconds before hearing the shower running. Glancing at the clock, he saw it was half past eight and knew Dany was just getting ready for work. As much as he wanted to keep her in bed with him all day, he doubted Jorah would find their excuse acceptable. Getting out of bed, Jon grew more awake and realized that Dany was not in his shower that was attached to the bedroom, but the other one that she’d been using as her bathroom since they had moved in, probably since all her stuff was in there.

Smiling wickedly, Jon decided to give her a little surprise. After all, she had over half an hour before she had to be at work….

*

While Dany rinsed the conditioner from her hair, she kept repeating to herself to just pretend it never happened. Even if it *was* wonderful, she’d never make it through this if she let her mind go where it wanted, to thinking about what they’d done over and over. The only way they could possibly go back to the way they were before would be if Dany didn’t dwell on it, but instead tried to forget it ever happened.

With a new resolve to not allow herself to think about it, Dany finished rinsing her hair. She was so caught up in her own thoughts, that she didn’t hear the door beside her slide open. Jon grinned as he stepping into the tub that doubled as a shower behind Dany. Slowly, he stepped forward and placed his hands on her upper arms before dipping his head down to kiss her neck.

He froze, however, when Dany jerked around and backed away from him, modestly covering her breasts with her arms, "Jon, get out!"

Taken aback, Jon stared at her, "What?"

Instead of trying to reason with him while they were both in the shower, completely naked, Dany opened the sliding door from her end and rushed out, leaving Jon in the shower alone. He quickly turned off the water and stepped out of the tub, grabbing a towel and wrapping it around his waist before chasing after Dany’s retreating form as she raced to her bedroom.

He got close enough to hold her bedroom door open when she tried to slam it, and watched as she hurriedly pulled clothes out of her dresser. Jon stood and watched her for a moment before realizing Dany wasn’t going to start explaining her reaction to him in the shower.

"Dany, what’s going on?"

"I’m going to work, and I’m probably going to be late," she replied digging through her shirts, trying to find her loose green one. At least it *used* to be loose.

Jon was dumbfounded; she was acting like something *huge* hadn’t happened the night before and he didn’t understand it, "Dany we made love last night-"

"Had sex," she corrected both him and herself. She had to remember that just because of what they’d done, they couldn’t now make the life they’d been pretending to have for everyone else a reality. It would never work in the long run… and she’d only end up hurt all over again. Dany vowed to never let a man make her feel so broken again.

"I *made love* to you, Dany," he insisted, "but now you’re acting… well, not at all like I would have expected. And I’m not going to let you just run out on me, I want answers."

"Can’t we talk about this *later*?" she asked, pulling the shirt on over her towel. Even though he’d seen all of her the night before, she had no desire to be nude in front of him again.

"No, I don’t think that’s a good idea," Jon replied, "I have a feeling that ‘later’ will always be a better time to discuss this. Why are you avoiding me? Why are you doing this, Dany?"

Dany sighed and averted her eyes, "We made a huge mistake, Jon. We’re not… together… like that. We made a promise to have an arrangement, don’t you remember?"

"But that doesn’t matter now! Last night, things changed!"

"No, they didn’t! Nothing changed!"

"Yes it did," he replied firmly, "You were sending me signals last night. I thought you wanted…."

As Jon trailed off, Dany quietly answered, "I don’t… I can’t. I can’t be what you think you want or need me to be."

"Dany, last night was the best night of my life!"

Dany cocked her head to the side, amazed by his words. She’d expected some persuading that they could be more than just a one night thing, but this was going beyond Jon’s sense of what was the right thing to do. She realized that he honestly believed what he was saying… and it made everything that much more pathetic. Shaking her head, she said, "That just proves that you’re desperate. Thanks to me, you aren’t dating and sleeping with regular girls… you’re getting all screwed up because, again thanks to me, you can’t have a normal life."

"I can’t think of anything more normal or natural than last night… I made love to my wife."

"I’m not your wife!"

"Yes, you are. After last night, you are," Jon replied, then added when she began shaking her head again, "Give me one good reason why we shouldn’t go along with this… take our relationship to the next level."

Dany was silent for a few moments, and Jon began to wonder if she was going to answer when she looked him straight in the eyes and said, "Drogo. I… I love him, even after what happened."

"You love Drogo," Jon repeated, turning around and running his fingers through his hair as he tried sorting it all out.

"Yes, I do… I’m so angry at him, but I love him… I can’t be in a relationship with anyone else when I feel how I do about him, carrying his child," she lied, not about loving Drogo- she knew she’d always love Drogo, even more now that he’d given her a son or daughter. However, she also knew that even with a part of her heart belonging to Drogo… she could love Jon as well. If only loving him didn’t mean risking it all over again… and *that* was something she was not willing to do.

Jon turned back around and faced her, letting her see his eyes were full of hurt, "I see… if that’s the way you feel, I guess I can’t change your mind."

Dany swallowed heavily and tried not to cry as she watched him walk dejectedly from her room, "Jon?"

He paused and looked back her, "Yeah?"

"I’m really sorry."

"I’m not," he told her before leaving her alone.

Still wearing a towel and a t-shirt, Dany sat down on the edge of her bed, willing herself to calm down and believe that this was for the best. Still, she felt awful… she’d managed to make Jon hurt… the same way she was terrified she would end up if she let herself start something with him.

*

"Is everything all right?" Jorah asked, looking at Dany with concern. He’d come in mid-afternoon to get some paperwork done, since Sunday’s tended to be slow and he didn’t have anything better to do. Dany had been rather quiet the entire time. Not in a bad mood, or sad… just quiet. 

And since Dany was *never* quiet, Jorah noticed.

Dany smiled, "I’m fine, just tired. I went to a party last night and I didn’t get to bed until late. As it is, I overslept and had to race around in order to get here in time, hence my fabulous hair," she joked, gesturing to her ponytail.

"Do you still feel up to our dinner tonight?"

"Dinner tonight," Dany replied slowly, trying to remember what he meant.

"Yes, I asked you last Thursday if you’d like to go out to dinner with me tonight after we closed up and you said yes," he reminded her.

"Oh yeah, I’m totally up for it," Dany quickly nodded; anything that kept her away from home and Jon sounded good to her. She knew she couldn’t avoid him forever, but ‘for as long as humanly possible’ sounded like a great idea.

*

Jon drowsily looked around the living room upon waking up in the recliner after a particularly loud noise on the television. A few seconds later, he remembered the events of the past twenty four hours and rubbed his face tiredly. Oh, how he wished it was just a dream, or more accurately, a nightmare. He wished that when he woke that morning, Dany would have been in bed next to him… and he could have loved her over and over until they both were too exhausted to move. Hell, even if they had just come home and gone to their respective rooms the night before, it would better than this.

At least he wouldn’t feel so stupid, so used. He loved Dany beyond reason and she loved her precious Drogo who would only hurt her. She loved a man who wasn’t even man enough to be there for the woman he’d impregnated and their child. Jon wanted to give her the world, but all she wanted to do was sit around and wait for some loser who would never come.

He wanted to hate her more than anything, but all he could muster was a whole lot of anger towards her and a hatred of himself for letting her make him feel this way. Even after the way she’d ripped his heart to shreds that morning, there was no guarantee that if she walked in that door at that moment and told him she changed her mind… that he wouldn’t be ecstatic and take her back immediately.

That thought got him alert as he noticed the sun was setting. Dany should be closing the magic store right about then, and she’d be home soon. Jon didn’t think he wanted to face her. It wasn’t until he’d cleaned up all the trash from the junk food and sodas he’d consumed that he remembered getting home from work the previous Thursday and Dany telling him of her plans to go out with Jorah that night. He wondered for a moment if she’d keep those plans before deciding that she most likely would. To Dany, what happened meant nothing. Why should she go so far as to cancel her dinner out?

Sighing, Jon opened the refrigerator and tried to look for something appetizing. He knew he really ought to run to the store, because he’d eaten the entire bag of Cheetos that Dany had bought herself while watching Terminator. She’d probably be pretty annoyed when she got the munchies and couldn’t find it.

Then again… she deserved it.

Smirking, Jon opened the freezer and pulled out her pint of Chocolate Fudge Brownie. It was only half full, but Dany had just gone shopping Friday evening so there ought to be all sorts of goodies in the kitchen… and he had a couple hours to stuff his face before she got home.

*

"Dany, I have something very important to tell you," Jorah said quietly after they had placed their orders, "I fear you won’t be very happy with me. I just ask that you stay calm.. try not to be rash or let your anger get the best of you."

Dany had to suppress the urge to lean forward and slam her head repeatedly on the table top. The last thing she needed after the day she’d has was something that might make her rash and angry. Sighing, she replied, "Go ahead, tell me."  
"Well, to begin with, Drogo’s been calling me."

Stunned, she asked, "He has? What for?"

"About you… I know you are angry with him, and rightfully so, but I think you are also aware that Drogo still loves you very much. I can tell that he feels a lot of guilt for not being here with you… and I think he even regrets his decision in a way. I get the feeling that a part of Drogo wishes he hadn’t done what he felt was best and instead had gone ahead and built a life with you."

Dany looked down, trying not to cry, "What did he say?"

"Oh, he just wants to make sure you’re okay… both your health and emotionally," Jorah answered, "I didn’t tell him that your uncle… he believes you still live with Aemon. I felt that if I did tell him the truth, he might end up coming here to… I don’t know… but he might come down there and I feared that he would just cause you pain. If you want, I can tell him the truth."

Dany shook her head, "No… you’re absolutely right. Drogo would probably blow into town, ‘fix’ my life… and just as I am getting a grasp on things again, blow on out."

"All right," Jorah replied, "anyway, Drogo believes you are still living with your uncle, so he doesn’t know about your arrangement with Jon. He doesn’t know that you have insurance that will cover your pregnancy… he thinks that you and your uncle are going to end up paying thousands of dragons out of pocket for medical bills. There is also the problem of all the furniture and clothing and everything else you will have to buy for this baby. Drogo feels bad enough that he’s not here… he really wants to help out with the money."

"I already told him I don’t want his money, tell him I haven’t changed my mind," Dany snapped.  
Jorah took a deep breath and withdrew a white envelope from the inside of his jacket, "It’s not that simple, Dany. Drogo’s opened a checking account in your name."

"What?" she exclaimed, "I can’t believe he did that! I don’t know why, considering he *always* decides what is best for me and acts on it… even when *I* don’t agree."

Jorah reached across the table and gently took her hand in his, "I know that you hate it and I don’t like that he did this either. But it *is* a good thing, so I agreed to talk to you about it."

"I don’t want his money, Jorah. It’s like telling him that he *is* the wise one, and I am just this immature, stupid girl."

"Or it’s like making him face up to his responsibilities. Drogo got you pregnant, if he were to do the right thing, he’d stand by you and be there for you and your child. He’d be here, taking care of you when you aren’t feeling well, going to the doctor with you, be there when you go into labor… and help you raise this child. He’d help you physically, emotionally and financially. He owes that to you and this baby. If you allow him to give you money, you’re letting him do part of his job, but he’s still not doing the other parts. And those parts are arguably more important."  
Dany looked at him sadly, "I know it’s *incredibly* immature, but I want him to suffer. I don’t want to give him a chance to not feel bad about this. What if he says ‘Hey, thanks to me, the baby has a crib and toys and Dany isn’t in debt with the hospital. I’m so great and Dany’s so lucky I did this for her.’?"

Jorah smiled at her horrible impression of Drogo, "Trust me when I tell you it’s not possible. With certain men, yes, they would think themselves honorable for helping out with the finances. However, you and I both know even with his faults, Drogo is not one of those men. He’s going to know that you are missing out on certain things, as is your child, because he’s not there. If it helps, he’s also going to miss out on a lot of good things too. He won’t know his own child, Dany. When your son or daughter says their first word, takes their first step… he’ll miss it. You’re going to get to be there for all those wonderful events."

Dany allowed herself a smile as she imagined her baby doing all those things that she already looked forward to, "That is pretty special."

"Yes… it is," Jorah agreed, "Now, I hate to sound like I am lecturing you, so consider this just me reminding you… that you know you could use money for this baby. The more money you have, the better the things you will have for this child. You won’t have to work as much… and when you have your baby, won’t you want to be able to spend a lot of time with them?"

After a moment, Dany nodded reluctantly, "I know that logically, there is no reason for me not to be happy to take his money. I guess I’m just really angry."

"It’s very understandable," Jorah assured her, then set the envelope down in front of her. "In here is an ATM card and checkbook… along with some booklets and other things you can read about the account."

"Why do I feel like I am being bought off?"

Jorah thought for a moment about what he could say to convince her. He was already very close, he could tell. He was rather surprised she was taking it as well as she was. Then again, Dany had been in that strange mood all day. Slowly, he used one more line of reasoning on her, "Why don’t you just take this envelope? It doesn’t mean you have to use the card or the checkbook. All that money can sit in the account. But then, if you have an emergency, you will have it there. This way *you* have money… you won’t have to ask Jon or I or anyone else for it. It’s *your* money."

The mention of Jon’s name brought tears to Dany’s eyes suddenly. She was so caught up with her anger at Drogo that she’d forgotten about their current situation for a few moments. Poor Jon, who probably hated her… was just as mad at her as she was at Drogo… and rightfully so. Poor Jon who had done so much for her… and if she had an emergency, he’d probably give her money despite it. But this way she’d never have to ask.

After a moment, Dany picked the envelope up and nodded, "Okay, I’ll take it… but that doesn’t mean I will use them."

Jorah smiled and patted her hand, "That sounds wonderful to me."

As Dany put the envelope in her purse, she had to disagree. Nothing sounded wonderful anymore. Wonderful was about a million miles away from her. Right then, everything in Danyland pretty much sucked.

*

When she finally walked in the apartment, after taking the long way home from the restaurant and sitting her parked car in the garage for ten minutes, trying to get her courage up, Dany wanted to do nothing but get to bed. Even despite their activities, she *had* slept fairly well the night before, and the store really hadn’t been busy that day. She supposed guilt wore her out.

As she walked in, she was relieved to find the living room empty. One glance at Jon’s closed bedroom door showed her he was in there, watching television from the loud machine gun noises. For a few seconds, she pondered knocking on his door. She certainly didn’t want to give him the impression that she wasn’t speaking to him. As it was, she wondered if he’d ever not despise her. Fear won out, though, and she decided to leave him be like he probably wanted.

Quietly, she went to her own room and stuffed the envelope Jorah had given her in the back of her underwear drawer, wondering how long she could go on this way. She understood that Jon was angry, she even welcomed his anger. She felt guilty enough as it is, so she was willing to take his punishment. However, they were supposed to stay married for just under ten more months. If she had to spend ten months living with someone who couldn’t bear the sight of her because of all the pain she’d caused him… she didn’t know if she could bear it. 

Things were different for her than before she’d married Jon. She knew she had Jorah’s support. She had a job… and as much as she didn’t want to have to use it, she had the money from Drogo. She’d give Jon some time. A few days, maybe a week to calm down, then maybe they could discuss things. If he wanted, they could end this now… go with the story that she confessed he wasn’t the father of her baby so he wouldn’t get in trouble. Then he could be rid of her. Actually, she was kind of surprised he hadn’t left… but there was always the next day.


	32. Of complications

Jon wasn’t sure how he felt when he came out of his bedroom to get a glass of water and realized Dany had come home and gone straight to bed without saying a word. He only knew she’d done that because he recalled leaving the light in the living room on, and it was now off as well as any lights in Dany’s bedroom.

At first he felt a pang, missing how open and friendly they’d been before, but then he felt anger that she was avoiding him… treating him like a burden… a hassle. Was he just something that would ruin her day because he was in pain over how she’d used him?

Did he even really know Dany?  
Jon shook his head, feeling like he was going mad. It was just that he’d never felt for anyone the way he did for Dany. And in turn, he’d never been hurt by anyone the way he had by Dany. He’d completely opened up to her… risked it all… and she’d used his vulnerability against him.  
He tried to rationalize, say that Dany wasn’t like that, she wouldn’t use him. After all, she’d been so reluctant, felt so bad about him giving up his freedom to marry her. She was unselfish and kind, she’d never *use* him.

But then again, Jon never would have imagined that Dany would have sex with someone while she was in love with someone else, carrying their child. He hated saying it, but perhaps Edd was right about her all along. Perhaps she had just lucked out when he found her and decided to go so far to help her, she’d gotten herself into a mess and he’d gotten her out of it.

Another realization hit him- Dany didn’t need him as much now. When he’d found her, she had no home, nowhere to go. Her family rejected her, and she thought her friends felt the same way. She didn’t have a job, a car, money… just the clothes on her back. Now she knew that Missandei and Grey would give her much needed emotional support, as would Jorah… who had almost completely become an older brother to Dany. Jon didn’t doubt for a minute that if Dany wanted to, she could move in with Jorah. Even without Jon, she had support, a home and money… everything she really needed.

What if she leaves? He thought, his heart filled with fear. As angry, humiliated and used as he felt, the idea of her leaving him was horrifying. He *loved* her. Even if he could never have her… just knowing she was close and he could see her… it kept him going.

Jon sighed and got his glass of water, hoping sleep would come soon. Maybe in the morning he could figure out what the hell he wanted…or at least how he felt.

*

Dany sighed as she looked at her overalls. There was no way she could wear them again. Even though she’d washed them frequently, since she’d been wearing them so much, she couldn’t very well wear the same thing every day before it would become noticeable. After tossing them in the hamper, Dany grabbed a pair of sweats out of her dresser. As sloppy as she’d look, at least she’d look different.

After tugging them on and putting a baggy white shirt on to go for the complete frump look, Dany sighed and flopped down on her bed before calling Missandei. It was early enough that her friend probably hadn’t left for breakfast yet, she hoped.

"Hi, Dany!"

"Hey Missandei," Dany replied.

"How are you doing?"

"I’m okay… except I have hardly a thing to wear. And I mean it this time. This is not anything like pre-date jitters when I have nothing to wear. Most of my clothes won’t button or zip… and of those that will, only a few are actually breathable."

"Well, maybe it’s time for you to get some maternity clothes," Missandei suggested.

Dany nodded, "I know… that’s why I was calling you. I’d been hoping I could last a little longer, build up my savings a little more… but it’s inevitable that I will need new clothes, so I might as well buy them now. I just need to be careful not to go too crazy before I get a chance to figure out how much money I need for the baby."

"I’m sure if you buy a few outfits, you will be fine," Missandei assured her, "Do you work today?"

"Nope," Dany answered, "So I was thinking we could go on a little trip to the mall after classes today, if you don’t mind."

"I’m up for it!"

"Great," Dany said, trying to be excited about it. Yeah, maternity clothes sucked, but there was the whole excitement factor since it was because she was *pregnant* that she needed them. Unfortunately, she was incapable of feeling anything that could possibly be related to happy. She didn’t deserve happy… she deserved guilt and pain and punishment after what she’d done.

After she and Missandei hung up, Dany braided her hair and put on her make-up before bracing herself and leaving the privacy of her room, knowing she would most likely encounter Jon. After all, he had to get up and go to school Monday through Thursday too. Besides, they *had* to face each other sooner or later… might as well get it over with.

Taking a deep breath, she opened her bedroom door and walked out, immediately finding Jon at the dining room table, eating a bowl of cereal. She greeted in a cheerful, but not too cheerful voice, "Morning."

Jon glanced up at her, his eyes unreadable, and said in a monotone voice, "Morning."

Dany quickly walked to the kitchen to make herself some breakfast. That hadn’t gone too bad. At least he was speaking to her. Of course, compared to the way Jon usually greeted her in the mornings, he could very possibly be hating her. Still, she was determined to make things work, and even if they could never go back to the way things were before, she was willing to settle for close.

However, by the time her waffles popped out of the toaster and she’d soaked them in syrup, Jon was coming in to the kitchen to dump his dirty dishes in the sink before going to his bedroom. Dany tried not to look disappointed that they couldn’t eat together and continued carrying her food out to the table to have her meal alone.

A few minutes after she'd started eating, Jon reemerged with his duffel bag for school. She called after him as he rushed by her to the door, "I won’t be coming home after school."

Jon froze, afraid she was telling him she was leaving.

Hesitantly, she continued, "Missandei and I are going to the mall. I’m getting new clothes."

Relieved, but still angry with her, Jon simply grunted in acknowledgement before leaving the apartment.

Alone, Dany buried her face in her hands. She’d really screwed things up this time.

*

"God, I have loved these things since I was a kid… I swear it tastes better now, though," Dany raved as she swallowed a spoonful of the Triple Caramel Chunk icecream.

Missandei smiled from across the table, "It seems you think a lot of foods taste better to you now."

Dany narrowed her eyes playfully, "I’m *pregnant*."

"I know.. and let me tell you how grateful I am that you aren’t making me watch you eat really strange foods. Like… raisins and… anything."

Dany shrugged, "The only ‘unusual’ thing is that I have a major hankering for sweets. You should have seen all the junk food I bought last time I went grocery shopping." 

"I’m sure any weight you may gain, you probably need," Missandei reminded her, since Dany looked healthier now than she had before she’d gotten pregnant.

"Yeah, my doctor actually told me I was ten pounds underweight to begin with, and I ought to gain five to ten pounds just for the baby in between my last visit and the next one, so he wanted me to gain at least ten or fifteen pounds," Dany replied.

"Good, there you go!"

"Yeah, but what if I get *too* good at gaining weight? He’s going to want me to gain five extra pounds again for the next month, and then I will be caught up. I’m only about four months pregnant now, if I gain ten pounds a month for the rest of my pregnancy, I’ll gain, like, fifty pounds!"

"I’m sure it will slow down as you gain more weight, plus you’re still jogging, right?"

Dany nodded, "It’s like the only way I am staying *sane*."

*  
Nervously, Dany raised her hand and knocked loudly on Jon’s bedroom door. It was Tuesday, and things hadn’t changed in the three days since they had made love. She didn’t want to push things, but had decided that if she tried something at this point, it probably wouldn’t hurt.

She hoped.

"What?" Jon’s gruff voice asked through the door.

"Uh… I’m home from work," Dany called.

"Okay."

Seeing that he wasn’t going to open the door, she asked, "Can I come in?"

"Whatever," he answered after a moment.

Dany opened the door and took a step inside the room, looking at Jon on the bed, who hadn’t taken his eyes off the television.

The bed they had made love in.

"I… I was wondering if maybe you’d like to go out to dinner?"

"Not especially, no," Jon replied, still not looking at her.

Dany fidgeted nervously, "How long are you going to be mad at me?"

"I’m not mad," he said coolly, still engrossed in whatever was on the screen.

"But you don’t talk to me anymore."

"Got nothing to say."

"You could say how you feel," she told him, growing frustrated by the way he was acting…. or lack thereof. Even if he was angry and screaming at her… it would be better than this… indifference.

"I already told you how I feel," he replied, finally looking at her, "Two days ago in your bedroom. I laid it all on the line for you and apparently you didn’t care."

"I’m sorry."

"Don’t say it when you don’t mean it," Jon told her, "You obviously don’t feel sorry for anything other than the fact that I was foolish enough to think you weren’t still hung up on Drogo."

Dany shook her head and turned around, knowing it was too soon. At that moment she doubted there would come a time when they would ever be ready to go back to being friends. Quietly, she said, "Just forget it."

After she’d closed the door, Jon quietly said, "I wish I could. More than anything, I wish I could."

* 

Dany lugged the two bags of groceries into the apartment and rushed to dump them on the kitchen counter before they fell all over the floor. Jon looked up from his seat on the couch and considered getting up to help, but by then she was already in the kitchen. Instead, he decided it wasn’t too forgiving of him if he went and shut the door.

He went back to the newspaper and tried to ignore the fact that she was on the next room until she emerged a moment later holding another pint of Chocolate Fudge Brownie and smiled, "I bought you your own."

"No thanks, I don’t like it," he replied.

Dany gave him a strange look, since she’d noticed the carton from her other pint in the trash Monday evening and said, "Then why did you finish my other one?"

"Jeez, I’m sorry it was that important to you. I’ll pay you back right now," he answered angrily, setting down the paper and pulling out his wallet.

"No, I don’t want you to pay me back," Dany said, not caring that she sounded annoyed, "I just think it’s silly for you to tell me you don’t like it when I know you obviously did on Sunday."

"Hey, you can change your mind about who or what you like from one day to the next, why can’t I?"

"Yes, fine, you’re right! What I did to you was really screwed up and I do regret it, but I can’t take it back no matter how much I want to. I’m sorry, Jon, I really am, but I don’t want to lose our friendship," she told him, then sighed sadly, "But I don’t know how long I am going to be able to handle living with someone who despises me. I’m positive I can’t do it until next January."

She walked away and left Jon to think about what she’d said. He knew exactly what she’d meant by January. That was when they were supposed to get divorced. She was telling him that if things didn’t change… she would leave… just as he feared.

*

As Dany got r4eady to leave to the doctor’s office, she tried to decide whether or not to allow herself to get hopeful after Jon had actually said goodbye to her before leaving for work. Even if it was a simple, quiet ‘goodbye’, it was better than his way of just leaving without a word that had been what he’d done ever since…. the incident.  
Yes, it was definitely improvement. Far from the way they’d been before, but it was a baby step closer.

Later, as she walked out the door of the doctor’s office, finding out it was a girl… it helped make the baby feel all the more real to her. It was no longer a sexless, faceless child she thought of as her baby. Now she knew it was a girl, and she could imagine it with silver hair like hers or dark hair like Drogo’s, and she could tie little bows in it and put her in pretty little dresses. She was so excited.

Okay, so when the nurse had said something about how she was surprised Dany’s husband hadn’t come for such an important appointment and reminded her as she’d done the other two times that she’d been there that her husband was not only allowed, but encouraged to attend her appointments, she’d been a little bummed. Dany wasn’t sure how long they would believe he was just ‘very busy’ and she didn’t want him to have to take time off to be there. It was the one instance when telling people that she wasn’t married to the father and the father wasn’t involved with the child would have been helpful.

Still, she was in a great mood and had a strong desire to go buy a bunch of little dresses. Unfortunately, she had to be at work in half an hour, so there was no time. Besides, she had to figure out her budget and the baby wouldn’t need clothes for a good five months.

That didn’t mean she didn’t have the time and money for Burger King, though, she thought as she got into her car. After all, her doctor had told her to try to gain a lot more weight by her next appointment in a month and one of those yummy little Hershey pies sounded delicious.

*

Dany cursed as she saw the sun slipping past the horizon. There was no way she’d be home before dark. It was all Jorah’s fault anyway. If he hadn’t stared at her scarfing down her high fat, high grease, high everything else bad for her lunch, she wouldn’t have felt all self conscious and decided to take an extra long jog after work that evening, therefore keeping her out after dark.

She shook her head and smiled, brushing off any worries she had about it. Sure, she was four months pregnant, but she was still a regular girl. Odds were nothing would happen this close to sunset anyway. Jorah and Jon had just managed to get her all caught up in their neurotic apprehension.

As she neared their apartment complex, Dany grinned more broadly once again thinking about the fact that she now knew she had a daughter. A daughter of her own. Someday, she’d be able to say "my daughter." 

At least with her exercise she’d been able to work off some of her excited energy. Jon was working that night and she was still way too hyped to just sit home alone all night… not that if he was there they’d be big buddies, since he was still a lot quieter than normal around her.  
Maybe she’d call Missandei when she got home, see if she wanted to go to a movie. 

*

"I don’t believe it!"

"What?" asked the man walking next to him. They’d both awakened an hour early and had spent the time pacing until the sun set so they could mob someone to buy drugs.

"It’s a girl walking around all alone," the other junkie replied.

The man looked at where he was pointing and, sure enough, there was a girl jogging through the open gates of an apartment complex. "It’s still too early we’d better get out of here."

"What, are you crazy? We need some money, dude."

"Are you crazy? Someone could come from work around the corner," Court said, shaking his head.

"Whatever, dude… are you wimping out, or are you coming with me?"

Alone, the junkie took off in the direction of the apartment complex, hoping he didn’t lose her.  
Luckily he managed to run fast enough to get a glimpse of her walking up the path to one of the apartments about a hundred meters away. Unfortunately, a few seconds later she had the door open and was gone from his sight. HIgh on drugs, he walked up to the door. 

*

Dany sighed as she stepped into the shower and let the water wash over her. The heat of the water quickly relaxed her and she began rethinking her decision to call Missandei. Maybe she could make a salad and put the hicken in the oven and relax with the novel she’d started the night before. Tyrion hadn’t told her how addictive those things were.

Fifteen minutes later, she was wrapping a towel around her body, all comfy and clean, when she heard a loud pounding. Narrowing her eyes, she realized it was someone at the door. She rushed out of the bathroom and was halfway to the door when she heard someone shouting.

"Come on out, little girl!"

She froze as it hit her what was going on. A man banging on her door and scaring her. 

Just to be sure, she walked slowly to the door, as if it could burst open at any moment, and peered out the peephole. Sure enough, she saw a guy about six feet tall with light brown hair pacing back and forth as he shouted for her to come face him.

Dany took a step back and tried to get her head together. Mentally, she cursed herself for turning into a twit. She’d just go out there and kill him and be done with it. Even in her condition… it was just one man, she could handle it. As she pulled her sweat pants back on, Dany was hit with the thought that it was possible there was a group of drug addicts just waiting to attack her… and she couldn’t handle that. 

After managing the get her clothes on, Dany walked back to the door before noticing she had no weapon. Her hands were shaking as she searched the living room for a baseball bat that one of the guys had given Jon. 

All of a sudden, the door began opening…

*

"So did someone beat Dany with the ugly stick?"

Jon gave Edd a strange look, "What are you talking about?"

Edd smirked, "We haven’t had to endure any of your rambling about how wonderful and sweet and kind and beautiful Dany is for, like, a week. Did she die or something?"

He knew he was probably asking to be annoyed, since he’d been the one who hated hearing Jon go on and on about Dany before, but he *had* noticed she’d been absent from Jon’s conversation topics as of late and he was hoping there was trouble in paradise. After several days of wondering if his suspicions were right, but not wanting to risk another rave about Dany, curiosity had gotten the better of him and he’d decided to ask.

"Dany is fine," Jon glared at him, "I just don’t enjoy hearing the comments you like to make about her, so I try to avoid discussing her with you, which is really a shame that I have to do that, with you being one of my best friends and all."

Sam decided to stay out of it, since he too had suspicions that something had happened between Jon and Dany, but knew that if Jon didn’t want to talk about it, it was better not to push. However, the way Jon was scowling at Edd made him fear that he might be forced to step in if the both of them got angry.

"Okay, sorry, gods," Edd said, shaking his head, deciding something was *definitely* wrong with the… sorta couple.

"Jon!"

The three of them turned and looked at Tormund running towards them down the empty hall in  
the Night's Watch.

"What is it?" Jon asked, hoping there was some sort of emergency situation where his presence was needed so he wouldn’t have to go with his friends to spend the next few hours as armed escorts to transfer felonies from different stations in the Night's Watch.

"We were listening in on the 911 calls," Tormund explained, "Someone called in a disturbance… it’s at your place."  
Jon went into autopilot, walking back the way Tormund had come as he started spouting out orders. If the other guys had a problem with it, they didn’t say anything, just obeyed. Inside, Jon was freaking out. What if something happened to Dany? It was a thought he couldn’t bear.

He had to get to her, and fast.

*

Five minutes later, Samwell pulled the truck up to Jon and Dany’s apartment, in record time. The vehicle had hardly stopped when Jon jumped out the passenger side, with Tormund quickly following. As he raced up the walk and saw the man pounding on the windows and doors, screaming, all three of his friends were at his heels.

"Here, let me…" Sam began, watching in shock as Jon grabbed the man by his neck and threw him against a wall, "shock him."

Seeing his stun gun was useless, Sam stood still with the other two guys and watched Jon beat the hell out of the man, all the while making it clear that he never should have even tried to mess with Dany. Soon the man was on his side on the ground and Jon began kicking him in the stomach. He was blind with fury, not just because this junkie had gone after Dany… but because he was a man, just like Drogo. In Jon’s mind, this man was Drogo, the ‘man’ that Dany loved… the reason she couldn’t be with him.

At last, he felt Edd grabbing his arm and pull him back, "It’s enough, Man. Dragonstone’s cops will be here any minute."

"Yeah, it’s been ten minutes since the call… we need to take him now," Tormund informed him.

Jon coldly knocked him out before standing up straight and panting as he tried to get his head together while Edd and Tormund to carry him away.

After a moment, Tormund asked, "Do you guys think we should bail before the police show? I don’t really relish explaining our outfits."

"Maybe we should check on Dany first," Samwell suggested.

Jon looked at him and nodded, then pulled his keys out of his pocket. Slowly, he opened the front door… and scared the hell out of Dany in the process. She gasped loudly until she saw it was him and visibly breathed a sigh of relief. Jon gave her a small smile, "Hey, you okay?"

Dany nodded slowly, watching as he came in, followed by Edd, Samwell and Tormund, "What are you doing here? What’s going on?"

"Uh, one of your neighbors saw that druggie outside and called 911. We heard the call and headed over," Tormund explained.

"He’s taken care of," Jon replied vaguely.

"Shit, cops are here. What are we going to tell them?" Edd asked.

"Tell them we scared the guy off when we showed up," Jon replied.

"And why are we wearing these clothes?" Tormund asked, still worried about the fact that they looked very conspicuous.

"We had been planning to go play paintball, but I realized I had forgotten my wallet," Jon told him, getting a smile from Dany.

As the other three left them alone, Jon looked more closely at Dany, "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I’m fine, I just… I got out of the shower and heard him yelling and pounding on the door. I… got dressed… but I couldn’t find the baseball bat."

He noticed the way her hands were shakily moving over her stomach and how her voice wavered and knew Dany was far from fine. Tenderly, he reached out and lifted her chin with his hand to force her to look him in the eye. Dany couldn’t hold back any longer and let the tears spill as a sob erupted from her throat.

"I was so helpless and scared! God, I hate it… I couldn’t even save myself, Jon," she cried against his chest as Jon wrapped his arms around her.

He kissed the top of her head and ran his hand through her hair as he whispered words of comfort to her. All the while, he thanked God that it was only as bad as leaving Dany terrified. At least she and the baby weren’t hurt. They’d recover…. If it hadn’t turned out so well, Jon wasn’t sure if he could have lived with himself.

*


	33. Of changes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And another one, because I'm feeling quite generous and the muse worked just fine!

Jon handed Dany another tissue as she slowly stopped crying. He gave her a gentle smile and asked, "Tell me the truth now. How are you?"

"A lot better than I was ten minutes ago," she laughed, then added, "I’m okay, really. A little embarrassed, actually. I can’t believe I acted like that. A stupid man scared the hell out of me."

"Hey, things are different now. You have your baby to worry about, if you had opened the door for that junkie..."

"I might have lost her," Dany concluded, "And I love her so much."

"Her? It’s a girl?" Jon asked, suddenly remembering that Dany had been supposed to find out the sex of the baby that morning.  
Dany smiled and nodded, "Confirmed by my doctor."  
Jon replied, "A little girl…."

"Yeah, I have a daughter," Dany said proudly, rubbing her hand over her stomach.

Jon beamed down at her, "That’s wonderful."

She gave him a surprised look, "I’m kind of amazed that you… well, care. Not only that you raced over here to help… but then you stayed… and now you’re talking to me about the baby."

"Why do you say that?"

Dany looked down, "I was sort of thinking you despised me."

Jon shook his head, "I don’t despise you… I never did… I never *could*. I just… I just thought you weren’t… who I thought you were."

"Because I slept with you?"

"Because you slept with me when you’re in love with another man," he replied.

"Jon," she said quietly, then looked up at him, "I don’t want you to think I am… that way. I don’t want you to think that you were just there for my convenience, because that’s not how it was. To be honest… with me being weak already… and you being so wonderful…"

Jon blushed and looked away in self-consciousness.

Dany grinned before continuing, "It would take a strong woman to be so close to you and not *ever*… want you."

"Dany…" he pleaded her to stop.

She nodded, "The point is that I hurt you and I hate myself for it. I don’t know if it’s possible… or if I even deserve it… but I would do anything to make things right between us again. I can only offer you what I have… and basically all I have is my friendship. And more than anything, I want that, Jon."

Jon was silent for a moment before saying, "Well, you do have your firstborn to offer as well."

Dany giggled and smacked him on the arm playfully.

"However, your friendship is plenty for me," Jon added softly.

"Good," she grinned and held out her hand for him to shake, "Truce?"

"Truce," he replied, shaking her hand firmly before saying, "How about we seal the deal with you making me something to eat? I had some of your leftovers from last night… you’re getting to be a great cook. And since the guys decided I should have the night off to be with you, we have plenty of time for dinner."

Dany sat up straighter, pleased by his compliment, "I was just going to make a salad and chicken, but I’d love to cook for you. What would you like?"  
"It sounds great."  
"  
No it doesn’t, you wanted real food, and I am really into the cooking thing."

"Really, you know I love chicken… it’s no… whatever that pasta thing you made was… but it’s very tasty and this way we could hang out while it cooks."

"Okay," she nodded and got up to go put the chicken in the oven. 

Jon smiled at her comment and leaned back against the couch cushions, feeling like a weight had been lifted off of him. He honestly wasn’t mad at Dany any longer. Sure, his pride was still hurt, and he still ached knowing that no matter how he felt about her, she loved Drogo and not him, but when he’d come so close to losing her, it had scared him more than anything in his life. After something like that… his angry feelings had taken a backseat and he’d been able to see and hear Dany more rationally.

He knew now that she hadn’t used him. She’d gotten caught up in the moment, as had he. The only difference was that she’d done something she didn’t mean to do and he’d done something he’d dreamed of doing. It had happened, they couldn’t take it back… but they could be friends again… and Jon had every intention of keeping his promise to her, even if his heart broke in the process.

*  
When Jon walked in to the apartment after a long, boring morning meeting at work, the last thing he expected to find was a ton of boxes in the living room and a tired-looking Dany on the couch.

"Hey," he greeted, "What’s all this?"

Dany grinned upon seeing him, "This is all my baby furniture."

"All of it?" he replied, surprised. He’d figured she would have to spend hours and hours of looking before finding anything she liked after the way she’d driven him nuts buying furniture for the rest of the apartment.

She nodded, "Yeah, I was going for simple and they had that, of course. Actually, I liked most of what I saw, there doesn’t seem to be too many hideous cribs. Anyway, I managed to find a really nice one. They had a changing table and dresser in the same style, so I bought the whole set. It put a major dent in my savings account, but this wasn’t a bad decision, right? I’m only four and a half months pregnant, so it’s not like I should have bought the clothes now, should I?"

"Buying the furniture first is what I would have done. Now when you buy clothes and… um… whatever else it is that you need to buy, you have somewhere to put it," Jon reassured her as he started examining the boxes, "Well, I have the rest of the day off… I was thinking you and I could go out to lunch. Then maybe I can get this all put together for you."

Dany got out of the recliner and gave him a firm look, "I like the first part… but I can put this stuff together myself."

"Have you ever put furniture together?" he asked as she picked up her purse and started walking towards the door.

"No… but there’s a first time for everything."

Knowing he wouldn’t win this one, since Dany was far too insistent on being independent, he moved on to the other thing she’d said that had been bugging him as the both of them walked out the front door to the patio, "You know, if you need money, I have been saving all that extra pay they give me to support the two of you."

"I told you to keep that money," she replied, "Don’t worry about me… I get paid again Monday."

"Still, you’d have quite a bit of money if you took it. You could go buy a bunch more things for the baby."

"I can do this on my own," she persisted. And she would. She was going to teach her daughter that she could do it all on her own… and she’d start by buying everything herself… let both Jon and Drogo’s money rot for all she cared.

"Okay," he said, "I just want to make sure you know that if you ever need it, you have it. Plus, I think if you were to need it, it would about kill you to ask for it, so I like to offer… just in case."

Dany couldn’t help but smile, knowing he was right. At that moment she was once again grateful that she had his friendship back. It had been nearly three weeks since they had made up and they were almost back to normal. They’d tease each other and pretend to argue… sometimes she could even forget for a moment or two how it had hurt when they had really argued. However, she could never forget what their one night together had felt like. How loved and safe she’d felt… how warm it had been in his arms.

She wasn’t sure she wanted to forget that part.

*

Dany groaned, resisting the urge to take whatever object the piece of wood in her hands was and start beating the hell out of the rest of the pieces of the crib. She’d been on the floor in her bedroom for forty-five minutes and had yet to accomplish a single thing. It was one of the most frustrating things she had ever attempted to do.  
Jon watched from the doorway, wondering whether or not to offer his help again, since Dany’s plan to do it on her own obviously wasn’t going too well. She must have sensed his presence, though, because she turned around and gave him a forbidding look.

"Don’t even say it."

"I wasn’t going to say anything," Jon protested, a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth, "I was just going to beg you to please let me help you as I have nothing else to do and I’m terribly bored."

Sighing, Dany nodded her assent and set the wood down. As Jon sat down next to her, she looked over at him and complained, "I want to teach my daughter than women aren’t weak. Just because she is female doesn’t mean she can’t *happily* earn her own money, buy her own everything… live just fine without a man. Sure, men are nice to have around but they aren’t some all-powerful force that she can’t live without."

"Just because you happen to be a person who isn’t skilled at putting furniture together doesn’t mean you’re weak, Dany. We all have our abilities and areas where we lack. We’re human, you know."

"What if my daughter goes to school and hears about all the wonderful things the other mom’s do… you know, like give the other kids fathers… and realizes her mommy is a total moron?"

"You’re not a moron. My father made a point to teach me how to build things and work on cars… fix stuff… so I don’t have to run to the repairman for everything. It’s inconvenient and expensive. You see, my dad earned all his money. He was raised in a middle-class household. Even though *I* grew up well off, my father knew that the career I chose may not pay all that well, so I might not be as comfortable as an adult. Therefore, I have skills."

"I wish I had skills."

"You have skills, you just need to look at you more carefully," Jon told her as he tossed aside the instructions. No wonder she was having trouble… they were the kind that made no sense. Luckily he was pretty good at building things just by looking at them. "You can’t let one little thing turn you into Miss Negativity."

"I’m sorry, I’m just… wigging," Dany replied, "I.. I noticed a lot of people give me looks. It’s only been in the past month or so since I started showing… I get stares and sometimes dirty looks. Like this morning, when I was buying this stuff I saw this old lady shaking her head, all disapproving-like… because I’m young and pregnant and obviously keeping the baby."

"Don’t let it bug you… I know it’s hard, but just ignore people like that. They don’t know anything about you… what gives her the right to judge you?" Jon responded, doleful that she had indeed noticed the looks she got in public. They hadn’t gone anywhere together much in quite a while, but he had noticed a few of the patrons in the restaurant staring at her when they had their lunch. It had irritated him, but he hadn’t acted on it… since Dany didn’t appear to see what was going on and it would only upset her.

"I know… you’re absolutely right. I shouldn’t care what they think because it doesn’t affect my life in any way, but… people automatically assume that because I’m nineteen, my baby’s going to have a bad life. She’ll never have this or that… she’ll be all messed up because I am young and her father is already gone. I want to believe they are wrong… but I have all these doubts. I read all these books and check out all these websites, but in the grand scheme of things…" Dany said, then sighed, "I don’t know what I’m doing."

Jon stopped putting the crib together and looked at her, "Look, I know I am not a parent, but I have lived on this Earth and interacted with humans for twenty-two years, so I feel qualified in saying you’re a great person. You’re loving and generous and smart… and I just *know* you’ll be a great mom. I don’t think it’s something you can really train or be completely prepared for, though…. some of it is instinct… and some of it is just discovery."

"Well, what if my instincts are faulty or while I’m busy discovering stuff, I neglect her in some way? She’s going to need me for *everything*, Jon!"

"Calm down," he told her, "You know… you can always call my Aunt Cat. Anytime you want. You can call her now, tell her how you’re scared… she’ll tell you it’s normal. You can call her every day and she’ll be ecstatic to help you. After the baby comes, she’ll give you all her advice. So there, you have someone who has raised six children just a phone call away."

Dany gave him a small smile, "You’re sweet."

"It’s one of my many charms," he joked.

Seeing that the crib was actually beginning to resemble a crib, Dany nodded and said, "And the other would have to be your fine carpentry skills… you’re amazing!"

Jon grinned while trying not to have warm fuzzy feelings because of her comments. She liked him, thought he was a great friend, but clearly didn’t love him back, so he needed to quit getting giddy whenever Dany shot a smile his way. It would only break his heart even more when their time was up in just under nine months.

Nine months had never seemed so short.

*


	34. Of compromisings

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay. I'm on vacation with my boys and I haven't had enough time to breath let alone to write. BUT I manaqed to drop by with a specially long and fluffy chapter! Hope y'all enjoy it. I'll be probably be back to regular posting next Monday!

Yawning, Jon sat in his car, waiting for the garage door to open all the way so that he could pull his truck into it’s spot. It had been a hard night, and it wasn’t an easy shift. His whole body felt like one giant bruise and nothing sounded better than climbing into bed and sleeping until the pain was gone or he died- whatever came first.

Immediately, he noticed Dany’s car was gone. A million thoughts raced through his head, and all of them scared the hell out of him. It was two o’clock in the morning, where could she be? He seriously doubted it was anywhere good. What if something was wrong with the baby? What if Dany’d had an accident? Jon mentally scorned himself for not being there for her. If anything happened… he’d never forgive himself.

Trying to remain calm, Jon parked in the garage and hit the button so the heavy door would slide back down, as was his normal routine. If he ran around hysterically, what good would he be to anyone? Perhaps there had been an emergency… but with one of Dany’s friends. Seven Hells, even though it had never happened in the three months they’d been living together, maybe she was spending the night at Missandei’s.

As he unlocked the front door and entered the darkened apartment, Jon prayed he’d find a note with an explanation.

There was nothing. No note, no blood, no huge mess to indicate that something had happened. If it was two in the afternoon instead of the middle of the night, he’d be just fine. But it *was* the middle of the night and Dany was gone… and not knowing where was quickly driving him nuts.  
Jon grabbed the phone, but she didn’t answer, so he decided that he’d call Dany’s friends despite the late hour. This definitely constituted an emergency and one of them had to know what was going on. He’d just found Jorah’s number on his screen when the front door opened and Dany walked in, a bag of groceries in one arm and a package of Oreo’s in the other.

"Hey, when did you get home?" she asked casually, popping a cookie in her mouth.

"Where have you been?" he exclaimed, "I was freaking out!"

"Gwocwey stowe," Dany replied, gesturing to the bag in her arm as she swallowed the cookie, "I am having major cravings."

Sighing, Jon set the phone down and shook his head, "I can’t believe you went out alone at this time of night."

"I was *hungry* and you absolutely do not understand what it’s like to be pregnant and craving things. I have been good and just ignored my cravings for the past week, but I can’t do it anymore. I *needed* Oreo’s… so I went and got them."

"You should have waited for me, I would have been happy to go out for you. It’s not safe!"

"You didn’t get me pregnant, this is not your obligation," Dany reminded him.

Jon took a deep breath and looked up at the ceiling in an attempt to calm himself. Once he felt he could speak without screaming, he looked at her again and said, "Look, I didn’t get you pregnant, I know that. I am also aware I am not your real husband. I am basically your roommate. Even with all the knowledge about our situation that I possess… I still *insist* that you let me go get whatever you are craving so that you don’t go out in the middle of the night with drug addicts and other low lives on the prowl while you are five months pregnant!"

Dany rolled her eyes and walked past him to the kitchen, setting the bag on the counter, "Look, like I said, you don’t understand what it’s like. When I get a craving, it’s like ‘Dany, have it now! Now!’ and I feel like if I don’t get whatever I am craving in my mouth right away, I will die. So it’s not like I can just look at the clock and say ‘Oh, Jon will be home in an hour, I’ll just send him back out when he gets home from work.’ and be fine!"

"You do have a point there. I need to be around more… I’ll tell the Commander I need to start getting off earlier. Do you suppose if I was off by ten every night you would be able to avoid heading out on your own?"

"Jon, you don’t have to mess with your whole schedule for me," she replied, trying to find a spot for her pint of ice cream in the refrigerator.

"Dany, do you really think I will mind being the only guy who never has to pull a graveyard shift? Trust me, I will owe *you* for this one," he said honestly, "Now, will you let me be your official craving-fulfiller?"

Dany shrugged, "I don’t always get cravings really late at night. Sometimes I get them earlier… like at eight. You can’t be around 24/7."

"Okay, then you can call Jorah or Grey and see if they will pick up what you want. Hell, call Castle Black, any of those guys will be happy to run to the store for you as long as they aren’t working," Jon persuaded, "Just promise me that you won’t be running around at night for snacks."

Dany chewed on the inside of her cheek for a moment, contemplating his arrangement. Giving him a small smile, she nodded, "I’ll try."

"Thank you," he responded, gripping her shoulders as he pretended to be overcome with gratitude, "You’re a fine, fine woman, Daenerys."

She chuckled, then went back to unpacking her groceries, this time with Jon’s help. As he pulled out the jar of pickles, he grinned and opened his mouth to say something, but was halted when Dany covered it with her hand, "Say anything and die."

Jon beamed down at her as she pulled her hand away, "I wouldn’t dare."

Satisfied, Dany went back to putting the last of the groceries away before grabbing her opened package of Oreo’s and a jar of chunky peanut butter before heading out of the kitchen, "I don’t know about you, but I am *so* not tired! Want to watch something on Netflix?"

"Sounds like a great way to wind down," Jon replied, grabbing a can of soda from the refrigerator before following her, "You don’t have to work tomorrow?"

"Nope," Dany shook her head, "Sunday’s really aren’t a big day for us, as you know, so Jorah decided just to give me a weekend day off… and I absolutely don’t mind. I’ve got my savings built up again, so I think I’ll go shopping. I want to get all the bedding for the crib and some more maternity clothes. I may even buy some baby clothes… I’m just anxious to buy a little dress!"

"Well that seems fun… can I join you?" Jon asked, sitting a comfortable distance away from her on the couch.

Surprised, Dany looked at him and asked, "You seriously want to go shopping for baby stuff and maternity clothes?"

"Sure, I’m all for new experiences."

Dany smiled and shook her head, "Why not?"

*

"What’s this for?" Jon asked, holding up the crib bumpers Dany had set in the cart.

"I think it keeps the baby from falling out of the crib," she replied, tossing in two sets of sheets.

"Won’t the bars do that?"

"Yeah, but I think that it keeps the baby from falling… between… things…" Dany explained lamely, "All I know is your aunt put it on the list and it was under ‘Things you must have’ not ‘Things it would be nice to have’ so I am getting it. Your sister-in-law didn’t have crib bumpers?"

Jon shrugged, "I never really paid attention. I had no idea *little* babies needed so much stuff!"

"They do… and it’s all really expensive," Dany agreed, sighing at the prices. Good thing she’d really stuck to her plan to save money for the baby. Then again, buying maternity clothes wasn’t nearly as fun as buying all the cute clothes she used to be able to wear, so the temptation was kind of… nonexistent.

"So, how are we doing, list-wise?"

"We’ve made a dent, but that’s about it. After today, I’ll have all the furniture and bedding, but I still need a ton of clothes, all the grooming and medical and bath stuff, plus the stroller, car seat, high chair… and extras."

"On the bright side, you have four more months," he smiled winsomely.

Dany laughed as she pushed the cart towards the lamps section. There was probably already enough light in her bedroom, but Jon’s aunt had suggested she get a baby lamp anyway, because then she’d have a dim lamp… which was apparently important when it was a baby’s room. 

"Ooh!" Dany squealed, pointing at one of the lamps.

"What?"

"It’s a cloud, just like the bedding, and it’s very cute! I have a theme!"

"And you’re this excited?"

"Jon, I have just picked the theme for my daughter’s nursery, it’s a big deal," Dany informed him.

"Oh, okay," he shrugged, "Well, I like it."

Dany grinned and nodded enthusiastically, "I think it’s adorable."

Jon smiled at her excitement, placing one of the boxes that held the lamp in the crowded cart, "I’m thinking we might need a second cart."

"We’re almost done," she told him.

"Oh, you’re almost out of money?" he teased.

"You wish," she laughed, "I still need to go to the mall to get some maternity clothes. If you’re bored, though, we can go home first and I can go on my own."

"Are you crazy? I’ve never had so much fun!"

"Ha. Ha. Just remember, I am not forcing you into this."

"Seriously, I’m enjoying myself," Jon replied, stopping himself before he got in trouble by telling her how much he treasured any time he could spend with her. In fact, he’d even found himself having a good time choosing a diaper disposal system with her. It was almost like… they were real. And despite his efforts to stop loving Dany, despite knowing how it would only hurt him… being her husband and a father to her child were his greatest desires.

"Okay, but I have a feeling once we get in the store and you have to look at all these clothes, you’re going to bail on me," Dany said as they approached a cash register and begin loading the merchandise on the counter, "Which is fine… feel free to go elsewhere if you’d like."

Jon rolled his eyes, knowing it was useless to argue with her, "When are you buying baby clothes?"

"Not for a while, I guess. I really need to save more for that…. plus, Missandei made me promise not to buy any when she called this morning. She insists she wants to come with me, because it’s so fun."

"How does Missandei know whether or not shopping for babies is fun?"

Dany shrugged, "Well, the clothes are all so cute and little… it’s a girl thing."

"I suppose," he replied, "Although I have a feeling all the guys I work with would adore shopping with you as well."

"Well… they’re unusual."

Jon smiled as he watched Dany pay the cashier, wanting to tell her it was due to all the guys adoring her because it was so easy, such a natural thing to do. Shaking his head, he scolded himself for letting his thoughts trail off in that direction. Good Gods, he was acting like a lovesick fool. When would he get it through his head that Dany didn’t love him, didn’t want to be with him… so he might as well forget it?

*

"I can’t believe this is actually entertaining to you," Dany uttered, looking through the rack for her size.

"Well, there is obviously a lot you don’t know," Jon answered, shooting a smile at her as he pulled out a small pair of the black shorts, "Here you go."

Dany took the shorts and frowned, "At least, in maternity clothing, all the stretching helps me keep my size or one up. "

"You’re *pregnant*," Jon reminded her.

"I know," she sighed, holding the shorts up to her, "As much as I hate to say it, I’m going to get quite a bit bigger. I have, like, three more months of growing and I’m gaining a pound a week. Do you really think I can wear a small?"

Jon nodded, "They’re awfully stretchy and the saleslady did tell you that you should wear whatever size you wore before you were pregnant."

"I hope so, because if I get so big I have to buy bigger sizes in maternity," Dany lamented, looking through some khaki shortalls.

"Maybe you’re having twins," Jon suggested, then laughed as she glared at him, "Just kidding, I think you’re beautiful."

Dany looked away and blushed uncomfortably, which made Jon instantly regret his slip. They were quiet for a few moments as Dany picked out several items of clothing that caught her eye. When the pile started to grow heavy, she once again looked him in the eye.

"Time to try stuff on."

"Okay," he said, following her towards the dressing room, "Are you going to show me how you look in it?"

"Only if it’s not too wretched," she responded half-jokingly before disappearing into the dressing room.

Jon sat down in a chair, suddenly aware of where he was… and how much he didn’t feel like he fit in. There were few men in the store… and Dany was certainly the youngest shopper. In fact, the only people younger than her were either in strollers or in-utero. Luckily, nobody else seemed to notice.

After a few moments, Dany emerged in a pink short set with a worried look on her face, "Tell me the truth, do I remind you of bubble gum?"

*

"You sure you don’t mind?"

"Jon, I have spent the past three hours dragging you through Buy Buy Baby and an entire section of Maternity Clothing," Dany answered, "I think I can survive a trip to Barnes & Noble for you to find a book"

Jon looked down at her and smiled, "I just don’t want to wear your pregnant self out."

"Boy you sure are funny today!"

"You give me a lot of good material," he retorted, swerving to avoid her arm as she tried to smack him.

"You’re lucky I am klutz-girl with my big belly," Dany told him as she gave up on her revenge and walked through the entry to the bookstore.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," he smiled, following her.

Jon headed to the front of the fiction section, looking for the book he wanted, while Dany browsed through the books, not looking for anything specifically. He quickly found his and decided on buying it before walking up to the silver haired.

"Find anything interesting?"

"Not really, you getting that one?" Dany asked, gesturing to the book in his hand.

Jon nodded, "I’ll just go pay then."

Jon walked over to the cash register and got in line, trying to think of a good place to stop for lunch. He was getting pretty hungry and despite the fact that she’d been munching on a bag of pretzels she carried in her purse, he had a feeling Dany could eat a meal.

Glancing up, Dany saw that Jon still had several people in front of him in line, so she continued looking through the books. She really could use some new ones, since the book Jon had bought her was her one and only, even though Tyrion would borrow books, but she really needed to save up for the baby. She cringed as she thought of all she had left to buy. The car seat and stroller would be at least several hundred more dragons, and her daughter still had no clothes.

Sighing, Dany decided not to even bother looking and started walking towards Jon. She passed a couple young girls and an older woman who must have been the mother of one of them on the way, but as soon as they were behind her, she heard someone utter "slut."

Pausing, Dany turned and looked to find the older woman giving her a dirty look. Embarrassed, Dany hurried over to Jon, causing him to give her a concerned look as she stopped next to him.

"Is something wrong?"

"No, I’m just… done shopping."

"Okay, when we get out of here, want to stop for lunch? I was thinking since you said you were craving spicy stuff earlier, we could go to Meereenise restaurant," he suggested.

Dany nodded quickly, "Sounds good."

"Are you sure you’re alright?" he asked again, still not convinced that everything was okay.

"Yeah, I’m fine," she insisted, but didn’t really sound convincing.

Jon didn’t push, but he still wondered what was going on with her. They’d been having such a good day, what could have upset her so much?

*


	35. Of planes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay but here it is the next installment! Dany is set to meet the in laws!

"Dany, just tell me one thing."

Startled, Dany looked up from the romance novel she’d been reading and saw Jon rush through the Dragon’s Egg towards her, out of breath with a several papers clutched in his hand. Looking confused, she asked "What?"

"You can’t just take off on Saturday the 27th, can you? It’s absolutely ridiculous for her to expect you to not only want to go to Winterfell, but that you’ll be able to just drop everything, get time off work, and head on over there with a week’s notice," Jon ranted, then realized he had to explain, "I got a text from my aunt. She also emailed two plane tickets to leave for Winterfell next Saturday because she wants you and I to go to my grandmother’s birthday party."

"She wants me there too?"

"Exactly! It’s my grandmother and I can understand her wanting me there, but there’s no reason to drag you too," Jon replied, shaking his head.

Dany couldn’t help but feel a little flattered, since she’d assumed she was Jon’s ‘dirty little secret’ in the sense that his family may approve and support him, but they probably wouldn’t tell the rest of the family. However, if Aunt Cat wanted her there, she must have told everyone else.

"Anyway, I called her and she won’t listen to reason," Jon continued, "She says that she’ll only accept you not coming if you can’t get off work. She is just so positive you’ll love being with my family. Ridiculous, I know. So anyway, I came here to hear you tell me you can’t get off work so I’ll call her again and let her know."

"Oh… well, I don’t know. I’ve never asked Jorah about time off," Dany said, straightening and slowly walking towards the back, "I can ask him now, though."

Jon had been about to protest, to tell her it wasn’t necessary to ask since his aunt would never know the truth… but he knew a part of him wanted her to ask. After all, if he’d really wanted to, he could have waited a while, then called his aunt and lied that Dany couldn’t get time off. He was positive if he’d asked her to, Dany would have lied to cover for him. However, there was that part of him that didn’t care about his aunt trying to manipulate them. That part of him rather liked the idea of bringing Dany home as his wife, spending the week with her… in fact, the idea of being away from her for a week was rather unbearable.

Silent, Jon followed her and found Jorah sitting at his desk in his office, going through some paperwork. He looked up and smiled at them, "Is everything okay?"

Dany nodded, "Yeah, I just wanted to check with you about time off… Jon’s aunt wants us both to go to Winterfell for his grandmother’s birthday."

"Oh?" Jorah asked, smiling warmly at Dany. He knew her well and could tell she was rather excited by the idea. After all, he had quickly gathered that she was fond of her sort of mother-in-law and probably looked forward to meeting her.

"Yeah, my Aunt Cat isn’t big on asking people what *they* want to do…. She sent me two plane tickets, but I informed her that Dany does have a job and she can’t just take off without any notice. However, she still wanted me to check."

"When would you need off?" Jorah asked, turning towards his calendar.

"We’d leave May 27th and get back June 3rd," Jon replied.

Jorah nodded and marked the dates on his calendar, "I am sure Tyrion and I will be able to handle a week without Dany, as wonderful as she is. Besides, you need a vacation."

Dany smiled and kissed Jorah’s cheek, "Thank you."

Blushing,"You’re welcome."

Hearing the bell from the door ding, Dany headed back out of the office, "I better get back out there."

"Thanks Jorah, I appreciate it," Jon told the older man, "My aunt would have driven me insane if I hadn’t been able to bring Dany."

"Well, she honestly does need a vacation," Jorah replied, "Just promise me you’ll take good care of her?"

"Absolutely," Jon answered, "I’ll guard her with my life."

*

"You okay?" Jon asked seeing the way Dany was staring at the back of the seat in front of her, looking very worried.

Startled, Dany looked over at him, "What? Oh, um… yeah, I’m great."

He raised his eyebrows in disbelief. All morning she’d seemed like a nervous wreck, up hours before him so that she could check three times to make sure she had everything she could possibly need. Something was definitely up. What better way to spend the time than picking Dany’s brain?

"Okay, if you’re great, why do you look so stressed?"

Dany frowned, "I don’t look stressed."

"Yes, you do," he chuckled, "Either that or you’re sick."

"Gods, thanks, Jon… I really needed to know how bad I look."

"You don’t look sick," he assured her, "But you have a strange look on your face and you’re fidgety. You’re nervous, right?"

She shrugged, "A little… that’s how I get when I fly"

"Well, considering this one left on time and it’s May, so the odds of Winterfell being a snowed in mess are extremely slim, you don’t have to worry."

"Yeah, good point," Dany replied, giving him a smile for show that he saw right through before she continued staring at the back of the seat.

"Okay, how do you want to do this?" he asked, "I can sit here for a few more minutes and watch you be nervous before trying to drag an answer out of you again, or you can just tell me and we can work through it now. I’m fine- you’re amusing me either way… so it’s up to you."

Dany sighed and replied, without looking at him, "I’m scared about meeting your family."

"What? Why?"

"Because I’m the girl who is such an idiot she got herself knocked up by a guy who will have nothing to do with the baby. The poor pathetic girl who you married to save from a life living in the gutter."

Jon couldn’t help but laugh, "Don’t forget to throw in ‘drama queen’ to all these attributes you’re assigning yourself."

Dany rolled her eyes and turned to face him, "The point is they will either hate me or pity me. I never should have gone along with this. Your aunt is so kind, but this is just going to end up humiliating me."

"You couldn’t be more wrong," Jon told her, "I know my family, I’ll tell you what it’s going to be like. You’re going to meet a ton of people who will probably dote on you constantly. They will all love you and make you feel adored until it drives you crazy. In fact, they’ll probably want to trade me in and have *you* as a family member."

Dany smiled, "You really think they won’t think badly of me being pregnant so young… and not married to the father? I mean… a lot of people absolutely do not approve of it…. People who don’t even know me, much less have a relative who married me."

"Hey, my family is better than all those idiots," Jon protested, "Trust me, you won’t hear a single negative comment from any of them. Not only would they have to answer to me, they’d have to deal with my aunt- way scary. So even if they can somehow not succumb to your charms… they’ll be decent to you."

Relieved that she seemed satisfied, Jon began to wonder whether or not he was telling her the truth. He had no doubt that his family could never make rude comments to her, even if the older relatives disapproved of pre-marital sex…. plus they would be prepared for the fact that she was pregnant before seeing her… so they wouldn’t be shocked. No, they definitely wouldn’t be rude… and hopefully they would be more nurturing than pitying….

However, he probably had reason to worry. Jon had found that when it came to his family, he had to live up to a higher set of standards than anyone who wasn’t related to them. Somehow, he had little doubt that despite the fact that Dany had done something so very against their beliefs, they could love her and be quite angry with him for marrying a girl with the intent to divorce her… despite the fact that it *was* only to help the girl they loved.

As Dany relaxed and started reading a magazine, Jon started dreading their arrival in Winterfell.


	36. Of meetings

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There it is! Dany meeting the first of the Starks!

"Gods, I hope they let us off here soon," Dany exclaimed, waiting for the seatbelt light to go off. They’d landed in Winterfell a few minutes earlier and she’d been waiting impatiently for them to be able to get out of their seats ever since. At Jon’s questioning look, she explained, "I need to use the restroom really badly."

"Again?" he asked, since she’d used the bathroom at least five times in the hour and a half flight, as well as quite a few times on the first flight.

"I’m pregnant, Jon. I pee a lot," she replied defensively.

One of the flight attendants must have noticed the distressed look on Dany’s face, because she approached them and smiled, "Is everything alright?"

"Fine," Jon said quickly as Dany shook her head and asked, "Would it be possible for me to use the lavatory?"

"Normally we want everyone in their seats, but we’ve stopped moving and we can make an exception for you," the woman replied.

"Oh good," Dany sighed, pulling the seatbelt off and struggling out of her seat.

Jon felt a pang of sympathy, suddenly seeing how several hours on planes would be extremely uncomfortable for Dany. She hadn’t even said a word of complaint. 

"Poor thing," the flight attendant commented as she watched Dany disappear into the bathroom, "I took a flight when I was six months along… it was three of the longest, most unpleasant hours of my life. When is she due?"

"August 19th," Jon replied.

"Oh, so she’s six months too… she seems a little small for it."

"Not to hear her tell it," he joked, but at the same time worried about Dany. He didn’t know a lot about pregnant women, so he’d assumed she was normal. Then again, maybe the woman was wrong. He’d know for sure in a few moments when his mother saw them.

The woman laughed, "This is your first?"

Jon nodded quickly, feeling kind of uncomfortable since he was lying, but relieved that someone wasn’t being all disapproving about the fact that the two ‘parents’ in this situation were pretty young.

"Don’t worry, I complained the whole time about all my symptoms and all the weight I gained… but I want another!"

Jon wasn’t sure how to reply, but luckily Dany came back to her seat then and smiled gratefully at the flight attendant, "Thank you so much!"

"You’re welcome," the woman replied, "I better get up there so you don’t end up giving birth on here."

Dany grinned at Jon as she left, "She is a saint."

"Yes, she is very nice," Jon agreed, then noticed the seatbelt light went off and people started getting up, "I guess we should get ready to get off."

If Dany noticed that Jon tried to casually be the last person left on the plane, she didn’t let on. Usually when he flew anywhere, if you didn’t get yourself in the aisle right away, you had to wait for everyone to pass you before getting off, but of course some good citizen was more than happy to let the pregnant girl get in front of them, so they were still off the plane quickly.

As soon as they entered the airport terminal, Jon found himself assaulted by his aunt. She wrapped her arms tightly around his neck and kissed him soundly on the cheek, babbling nonsensically at how wonderful it was to see him again.

Dany hung back, shyly smiling as she watched Jon’s aunt ecstatic reaction to his arrival. He was really lucky to have an aunt who took him in as one of her own children when he lost his mother. However, a moment later, she found herself being pulled into Aunt Cat Stark’s embrace. Startled, she shot a questioning look at Jon, but he just grinned at her, amused by his aunt’s reaction. Soon he noticed his sister was also present, content to stand a few feet away and silently observe her mother gushing over her brother and her new sister-in-law.

"Sansa," Jon greeted, hugging his younger sister.

Sansa hugged him back and smiled, "Good Gods, are you even *more* brawny than before?"

"Of course, I have to fend off all the females that jump all over me constantly," he joked.

"Well, that’s important now… the ring’s not enough to deter them?" she asked, pointing out the wedding ring Jon wore out of habit. Since he wasn’t interested in dating anyone and spent a lot of his time with people who thought they really were married… and he, himself, wished they really were married… it was easier to just keep the ring on all the time.

"Uh… you know…"

Sansa smiled, "I know the circumstances of your marriage. I’m just teasing… although judging by Mom’s love for her… you may not be allowed to get divorced."

As the two of them turned to watch as Aunt Cat was still hugging Dany tightly and patting her belly, Jon wished it was that simple.

"Oh dear, you’re six months pregnant now, right?" Aunt Cat asked.

Dany nodded, "As of yesterday."

"Honey, you’re too thin."

"I’m a lot of things… thin is not one of them."

Aunt Cat put her arm around her and started leading her towards her nephew and daughter, "You’re pregnant, and for a pregnant woman, you are too thin. Jon’s obviously doing a bad job of taking care of you."

"Aunt Cat, I try… wait until you see how stubborn she is," Jon defended himself, "Besides, she really pigs out… I don’t know why she doesn’t gain a ton of weight."

Sansa punched him in the arm, "Please Dany, allow me."

"Good job, Honey," Aunt Cat commented, smiling as her nephew rubbed his arm, "Dany, this is my daughter, Sansa."

"Hi, it’s so nice to meet you," Dany said to the red haired girl, "I’ve heard a lot about you from Jon and your mother."

"Don’t believe a word of it," Sansa grinned, leaning over to give Dany a gentle hug.

"Is she not the most darling thing you have ever seen?" Aunt Cat commented, stroking her hand over the back of Dany’s hair fondly.

Sansa nodded and winked at Dany, "She’s adorable."

"We’d better go get your luggage so we can head home," Aunt Cat said, "Ned and Robb’s kids are all over at our house and everyone else is coming over so we can have a barbecue. Do you like barbecues, Dany?"

"Sure," Dany replied.

"Good, we need to get started right away. Fatten you up!"

Jon smiled as he and Sansal trailed after Dany and Aunt Cat as the older woman chattered on. He knew he no longer needed to worry about Dany- Aunt Cat was on the case. Dany had shown weakness and that was all his aunt needed to take charge. Dany didn’t stand a chance.

*

"Hey Sansa, I thought you swore you would never have a minivan?" Jon asked, grinning at the back of her head from his spot in the middle row of seats in his sister’s car.

"This isn’t a minivan, it’s a compact SUV!" she replied defensively.

Jon smirked at Dany, who rolled her eyes, before replying, "Well it has three rows of seats, just like a minivan. What’s the difference?"

"No sliding doors!."

"Doesn’t sound like a big difference to me."

Sansa made a frustrated sound in the front seat.

"What’s wrong with a minivan, anyway?" Dany asked.

"I don’t know, Dear," Aunt Cat sighed, "Sansa is just very conceited about them, so of course Jon has to tease her about it."

"You don’t have a brother, do you, Dany?" Sansa asked.

Dany shook her head, "I’m an only child."

"Consider yourself lucky," Sansa assured her, "A brother’s sole purpose is to make your life Seven Hells."

"Sansa, don’t tell her that. Dany, you now have three brothers and two sisters," Aunt Cat informed her.

"Gods, Aunt Cat, are you trying to make her heave herself from a moving vehicle?" Jon exclaimed.

"Jon," Aunt Cat said in her warning voice, then cried, "Dany look there! That is the hospital where I gave birth to all of my children."

Dany indulged her, peering out the window at the tall building. Next to her, Jon began silently praying that his aunt would leave out all embarrassing details from the tour she was most likely to give Dany on the rest of the way home.

*


	37. Of family

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Meeting the fam is complete!

Jon awoke to the sound of Dany, Sansa and his aunt laughing hysterically. He immediately moved his hand over his face, checking to see if he’d drooled during what had to have been a short nap since they still weren’t home. However, he couldn’t find anything they could be laughing at and began wondering what he’d done.

"What?" he asked drowsily.

The three of them began laughing harder until Sansa caught her breath, "Mom just told Dany about that time when you were twelve and had a crush on Erena Glover."

Jon felt himself blush, mortified. He still couldn’t believe he had been such a fool to think that he, a mere twelve year old could date a seventeen year old. He’d been the butt of many family jokes for quite a while after that.

Dany patted his arm and smiled, "I think it’s cute."

Jon rolled his eyes, not at all comforted. At long last, they stopped laughing a moment later, leaving the vehicle in comfortable silence. Soon, their home came into view and Jon felt his heart warm, as it always did when he first saw the place he’d where grown up after being away.

He was so caught up in his memories that he didn’t notice Sansa clearing her throat and giving her mother a pointed look. Aunt Cat noticed and reluctantly turned in her seat to face Jon and Dany.

"Honey, you know how I told you Grandma was going to be staying with us for the week too?"  
Jon nodded, "Yeah."

"I may have… forgotten… to tell her everything," Aunt Cat admitted, "You see, the first thing I told her about your… situation… was that you’d gotten married and she was so excited that I didn’t have the heart to tell her the rest of it."

"The rest of it?" Jon asked, trying to understand what she was telling him.

"She sort of thinks that you and Dany are really married… a regular couple… and that this is your baby."

"What?! Aunt Cat, how could you?"

"You know what, Jon, you didn’t have the nerve to do it yourself! I didn’t hear you offering to tell the family! You were more than happy to let me explain everything," Aunt Cat replied defensively, "You know that I agree with your decision… it’s just not an easy thing to tell every member of the family, especially Grandma. She’s so fragile, you know."

Jon sighed, "You didn’t tell anyone the truth, did you?"

"I did… well, I told Sansa, Robb, Talisa, Arya, Bran and your father knows… I didn’t tell Rickon, he’s just too young."

"But nobody else?" Jon asked, then sighed when his aunt nodded, "Great… this is going to be a wonderful vacation. I’m going to get yelled at by the entire family."

Dany cleared her throat, feeling incredibly uncomfortable after witnessing the family argument, "If you would prefer, I can tell everyone the truth. They won’t like me anyway… and it might make it easier on you."

"Dany, I won’t make you do that," Jon replied quietly as Sansa stopped the car in the round driveway in front of the house. Dany forgot that she was about to argue with him as she stared at the beautiful grey castle home. It was huge! She wasn’t sure what she’d expected, but this was not it.

"Well, I was thinking that you wouldn’t have to say a word to them. You two are used to pretending you’re a regular couple back home, right?" Aunt Cat asked, "You could just do that here as well."

Jon frowned, realizing there was probably a lot more to it than his aunt just not having the nerve to tell everyone the truth. He had already known she adored Dany… and now that he thought about it, he wouldn’t put it past her to do some manipulating to get Dany to be her real daughter-in-law.

But what other choice did he have?

As Sansa and Aunt Cat opened their door and climbed out of the car, Dany put her hand on top of Jon’s to stop him from pulling off his seatbelt, "I’ll do it if you want… tell them the truth, that is."

She honestly meant it, but half-hoped he’d tell her no. Telling a bunch of people she didn’t know that she’d gotten herself knocked up and their relative that they loved had screwed his life up over it was not her idea of a good time… but she owed Jon.

Jon shook his head, "We can do this, it’ll be fine."

"But what will you tell them when we divorce?"

Jon shrugged, "I guess the same thing I’ll tell all the guys."

"Oh," Dany replied quietly and set to removing her own seatbelt while trying not to let it bother her that Jon’s family would end up hating her. She’d probably referred to by some horrible nickname for years to come.

Taking a deep breath, Dany climbed out of the vehicle and walked around to the back where everyone else was pulling out the luggage. All her efforts to assist were thwarted so she was forced to follow up a few stairs to the front door of the home.

Dany’s eyes widened as she took in the even more beautiful inside of the home. She knew Jon wasn’t exaggerating when he’d told her that it was like he’d grown up in a painting. The castle was something out a movie. A movie with the perfect family in the perfect home. She was content to stand in the middle of the foyer and take in the curved staircase leading to the second floor, as well as the various doorways to other rooms in the house.

"Are you okay, Dear?" Aunt Cat asked, touching Dany’s shoulder in concern.

Shaken out of her reverie, Dany smiled at her, "Sorry, it’s just… your home is so lovely."

"Oh, you are such a sweetheart," Aunt Cat grinned, hugging Dany, "I just love this girl!"

Sansa leaned closer to Jon, "You do realize that Mom has basically adopted Dany, right? She always wanted one more daughter… and now she has one that’s too naïve not to let her dote and persuade to her heart’s desire. I haven’t let her do it, much less Arya with ease for years… but Dany won’t wise up for quite a while."

Jon shrugged, "Let her have her fun. I think Dany could use some mothering… even an overdose of it. She’s gone without for a while. Besides… it’s only for seven and a half more months."

Sansa snorted and shook her head before walking through the door to the kitchen. Jon frowned and was about to follow her and demand to know what she was trying to imply when his aunt grabbed his hand while wrapping her other arm around Dany’s shoulders.

"Let’s leave the bags here so we can go find everyone else. They’re probably in the backyard," she told them as she led them through various rooms to the family room in the back of the house so they could go out the sliding door to the back, "Dany, Jon will give you the grand tour later. I’d do it now, but it’s late and you need to eat."

"Oh, I’m okay," Dany protested.

"Nonsense… besides, everyone is dying to meet you!"

As Aunt Cat pulled them out the door, Dany found there was a vast backyard with plenty of free space, as well as a basketball hoop set up with concrete all around off to one side, a small playset near it, and a Godswood on the other side, plus there was a large picnic table and other smaller tables with food all over them near the brick barbecue.

"Uncle Jon!"

A small girl with nearly black hair raced towards them and flung her skinny arms around Jon’s neck just as he bent down to pick her up, "Hey Lyarra, how’s my favorite niece?"

Lyarra giggled, "I’m your only niece, silly."

"Oh, I forgot!" Jon exclaimed, grinning at the little girl, then found another set of arms around his leg. Looking down, he saw her twin brother beaming up at him, "Rickard!"

"Hey Uncle Jon," the boy greeted eagerly, excited to see the uncle he idolized after such a long time.

"Dany, this is Lyarra and Rickard," Aunt Cat introduced the newest member of her family to her eldest two grandchildren, "They’re Robb’s twins."

Dany made a mental note to try and get some advice from Jon’s brother about baby names. She seemed to change her mind on a weekly basis.

"You two, this is your new Uncle Dany. Remember I told you about her?"

Lyarra nodded, "You’re married to Uncle Jon now."

"And you’re going to have a baby that will be our cousin," Rickard added.

"That’s right," Dany nodded, not being able to help but feel a small pang knowing that these children would end up very confused when she suddenly wasn’t their aunt anymore… and their cousin disappeared as well. Still, it was hard not to smile at their adorable faces as they looked at her. "It’s so nice to finally meet you two. Your Uncle Jon has told me a lot about you. I shopped with him for your birthday gifts."

"I’m six now," Rickard informed her, holding up one hand and one finger on the other hand.

"Me too," Lyarra piped up, "We’re twins, but I’m a little older."

"Wow, that’s pretty special being a big sister!"

"Yeah, and I’m named after my great-grandmother! I have another little brother, his name is Rodrik," Lyarra informed her, "But he’s two and just a little kid."

"Oh," Dany nodded, trying not to laugh at the fact that the six year old obviously thought she was far from a little kid.

"She’s just mad because he never listens to her and she’s so bossy," Rickard told Dany.

"Shut up, Rickard!"

"Now, now… you know Grandma doesn’t like to hear that," Aunt Cat scolded her granddaughter, before taking Dany’s hand, "Let me introduce you to the rest of the family."  
Jon set Lyarra down so she could go play before he trailed after Dany and his mother so he could reunite with the rest of his family.

"Ned!" Aunt Cat called to an older man standing in front of the barbecue.

Dany immediately knew it was Jon’s uncle, father figure, and as they got closer, saw that he was an older version of Jon… and Jon had nothing to worry about as he got older as far as looks were concerned. She watched on as father and nephew quickly embraced and said a few words in greeting before Aunt Cat pulled her closer.

"This is our new daughter-in-law," Aunt Cat informed her husband proudly, "Isn’t she absolutely beautiful?"

"Aunt Cat, you’re embarrassing her!" Jon exclaimed, making Dany blush even more than she’d already been.

Ned smiled and gently hugged Dany, "Don’t worry, Catelyn says embarrassing things about everyone so much that you’ll get used to it and it’ll lose its effect quickly."

A dark haired woman and a man approached, with brown tinted red hair, and smiled, "You must be the infamous, Dany."  
Jon hugged the man and grinned, "Dany, this is my brother, Robb and his wife, Talisa."

"Hi, nice to meet you," she said, shaking Robb’s hand and giving a hug in the woman.

"This is great, now you’re the new family member. I’m off the hook," Talisa joked.

Dany hardly had a chance to make polite conversation before Aunt Cat was tugging her away to meet other members of the family. Jon dutifully followed, both to say hello to the family members he hadn’t seen since Christmas and to protect Dany from Aunt Cat. He loved her, but he feared leaving her alone with Dany. Jon could practically see the wheels turning in Aunt Cat’s head. She liked Dany… and she certainly didn’t want to lose her in January.

A girl who looked like she could be Jon’s twin saw them and grinned before hugging Jon, "Hey!"

Jon returned the hug before pulling back and looking at Dany, "This is my sister, Arya,"

Dany smiled at the man, "The youngest sister, right?"

"That’s right," Arya replied, giving her a loose hug, "And you would have to be the wife that’s not really the wife."

"Arya!" Aunt Cat scolded, swatting her child on the arm, "What a horrible thing to say."

"Well, it’s true, Aunt Cat, " Jon replied as Arya and Dany gave her strange looks.

"But I don’t like to hear talk like that," Aunt Cat insisted.

"What, is Arya upsetting Mom again? I’m so surprised," a boy, same coloring as Jon and Arya said as he approached them, a bright smile on his face. He walked up to Jon and hugged him, "It’s so good to see you, brother."

"Hi Bran," Jon responded, smiling before gesturing to Dany, "This is..."

"Dany," Bran finished for him, "I have heard a lot about you. My mother has adored you for months… I bet she loves having you in her clutches."

"Oh course I do," Aunt Cat grinned, "We’re going to have so much fun. I’ll take Dany shopping, so we can get things for the baby and some maternity clothes. Oh, and we can go to the spa and get massages. Trust me, Honey, you will love getting a massage! Arya never lets me spoil her, and Sansa can escape me because she’s away in College, so I am planning on having a great time with you here. Arya, maybe we can take her for a facial?"

Ariel nodded, "Perhaps we could even go for manicures and pedicures. Make a day of it."

Dany smiled more widely, thinking Jon was crazy for being so worried, "I’m definitely in for that!"

"Oh good!" Aunt Cat exclaimed, clapping her hands together gleefully.

"Dany, you have made my mother’s day… but you have no idea what you have done to yourself," Arya teased, then waved her hand towards a younger boy coming out of the house, "Rickon, Jon and Dany are here!"

The boy walked over and quickly hugged Jon before embracing Dany, "Hey, nice to meet you."

"Dany, this is Rikkon, he’s my youngest. He just turned 13, my big boy," Aunt Cat doted kissing her son on the cheek.

"Mom," Rikkon protested, pulling away. 

“You’re the younger boy, so I can still have a great time kicking your butt," Jon smirked at his brother.

"You wish! I’ve been working out," Rickon replied, flexing his arms and making his siblings laugh hysterically.

"That’s enough," Aunt Cat told them, "You two still need to see Grandma. Where is she?"

"She’s in the kitchen," Arya told her, "She wants to watch some show on TV. I was there with her, but when you guys came home Sansa took over."

"Okay, good, I can introduce you to Grandma and show you the house," Aunt Cat said to Dany as she once again grabbed her arm and began pulling her to the house.

"Uh, did she tell you that Grandma thinks you just married some sweet girl and the two of you are having a little baby?" Arya asked, quietly pulling Jon aside.

Jon nodded, "Yeah… it’s going to be really fun telling her I am getting divorced in January and having to hear about it for the rest of my life."

Arya sighed and shook her head, "I don’t know what to tell you, Jon. For one thing, you’ve got to know that it would be really hard to explain the truth to Grandma… plus, I don’t know if you noticed, but Mom doesn’t seem happy with the idea that a year from now, Dany won’t be part of the family."

"I know… when I first told her what we’d done, I was so relieved when she wasn’t furious with me," Jon told her, "Now I have to wonder if this is worse…. She’s going to try to manipulate Dany to get what she wants… and end up with her own heart broken in the end. She has all these hopes for a new daughter-in-law and a new granddaughter, but she’s going to have to give them up in the end."

"Or even worse… you just know Mom can manipulate Dany already… she may get stuck dragging her kid back here for the rest of their lives as well. She may just tell the family you guys got divorced and forget about the story where the baby turns out not to be yours."

Jon couldn’t seem to summon up the disappointment at the news that he might continue to see Dany for the rest of his life. It didn’t matter, though, because his mother was calling him so that he could go see his grandmother. Sharing a smile with his younger sister, Jon rushed to catch up with Aunt Cat and Dany.

"Grandma is going to love you," Aunt Cat smiled, patting Dany’s hand, as they walked through a different door than the one they had entered the backyard through.

Dany found that this one led to the kitchen, unlike any kitchen she had ever been in. It was quite large, and the epitome of homey. There were all sorts of gadgets and appliances, some Dany had no idea what they were… but it still gave her the feeling of warmth and family, just as everything else she’d encountered in Winterfell.

"Mama," Aunt Cat said, leading Dany to an frail-looking woman perched on a stool in front of a small TV that sat on the counter.

The woman looked up at them and grinned widely, "Is this my Jon’s wife?"

"Yes," Aunt Cat nodded, "This is Dany. Dany, this is my mother-in-law, Lyarra Stark."

Lyarra made a sound of delight and held her arms open to Dany, "Oh my, look at you!"

Dany smiled and carefully bent a bit to hug the woman, worried she might squeeze her too hard and break her, "It’s nice to meet you, Jon’s told me a lot about you."

"My Jon is a good boy… well I suppose he’s a man now, isn’t he?"

Dany nodded as Jon stepped forward, "Hey Grandma."

"Oh, there he is! Yes, he is certainly a man now," Lyarra laughed as she hugged her grandson, "A man with his own family."

Dany felt a pang of guilt before, as if she sensed it, Aunt Cat patted her hand, "Hearing about the baby has made her so happy."

"Jon, would you please go get my sweater for me? It’s in my room," Lyarra asked her grandson.

"Absolutely, Grandma," Jon replied, then looked at Dany, wondering for a second if she’d be okay alone with his aunt before he realized he was being silly. Besides, Sansa and Talisa were there. Heading out the door to run up the stairs to the room his grandmother always stayed in when she visited, he called, "I’ll be right back."

"I always get so cold," Lyarra told Dany, patting the stool next to hers, "However, whenever I was pregnant, I got very hot."

"Yeah, I do notice as it the weather gets warmer and I get bigger, I tend to be more uncomfortable, but it’s not too bad," Dany replied, smiling and patting her stomach as she sat down on the stool.

"Catelyn tells me you’re having a little girl," Lyarra said, "They’re a lot of fun to shop for."

"Yeah," Dany grinned, "Lots of little dresses."

"Have you gone totally crazy buying stuff?" Talisa asked, "As soon as I found out one of the twins was a girl, I bought a ton of stuff. Poor Rickard had half as much clothes as Lyarra."

"I haven’t bought too much yet," Dany said, "I went with my friend the other day and got a few bodysuits, but she talked me out of getting too much else… she had me go ahead and register at some stores."

"Oh, for a baby shower!" Aunt Cat exclaimed, "We love baby showers, don’t we, Mama?"

Lyarra smiled and nodded, "I love any sort of party… and one that celebrates a brand new baby is especially nice. Cat just loves a reason to go shopping."

“That’s right”, Aunt Cat commented, pulling a glass from the cupboard, "You need to drink plenty of milk, Dany. I’ll fix you a glass now."

"Oh, that’s alright. I don’t need anything and I really don’t want you waiting on me," Dany protested.

"Let her, Honey," Lyarra smiled.

"Yeah, that’s one of the major benefits of pregnancy, you get everyone to do stuff for you," Talisa added, winking at her.

"I can’t stop thinking about how gorgeous this baby is going to be," Lyarra said, "Jon’s such a handsome man and you are absolutely beautiful."

Dany blushed, "Thank you."

"Do you have any brothers or sisters?"

"No, I’m an only child," Dany told the older woman, "This is all very different to me, but I like it."

"Your mother must be very excited about the baby," Lyarra said, then frowned when she saw Dany look down almost shamefully.

Aunt Cat bit her lip as she walked over to them with the milk for Dany, "Actually, Mama, she’s an orphan and Dany has an older relative, who raised her and he’s a little… upset… Dany’s rather young, you know."

"Oh, I’m sorry!" Lyarra apologized, "Don’t you worry, though… as soon as he sees his grandbaby, he’ll change his tune."

"I hope so," Dany replied, not really buying it. She doubted her uncle would ever come near her again… certainly not close enough to see the baby.

Trying to lighten the mood, Sansa sat on the stool on the opposite side of Dany and began playing with the woman’s hair, "So Mom, I think a shopping trip with Dany is definitely in order."

Aunt Cat smiled at her daughter as she handed Dany the milk, "Absolutely! Plus, I talked to Arya and she agreed to a facial, manicure and pedicure. Are you in?"

"Sure," Sansa grinned, then leaned closer to Dany, "I don’t mind as long as you’re here for her to dote on and not drive me insane!"

Dany couldn’t help but laugh at that. She didn’t mind the way Aunt Cat doted on her at all. Even though she did embarrass her on occasion… she couldn’t imagine anyone minding having a mother like her.

Jon came back into the kitchen carrying both Lyarra’s sweater and a little boy, "Look who I found."

"Aww, he woke up from his nap? Well it was good while it lasted," Talisa sighed, taking her toddler son from her brother, "Dany, this is Rodrik."

"Oh, this is the one that Jon was in the delivery room when you had him, right?" Dany asked, smiling up at the still half-asleep child. He hardly looked like his older brother and sister with his dark hair and brown eyes… but he was still absolutely adorable.

"Yeah, he’s the one," Jon told her, opening the refrigerator door for something to munch on.

"We have potato chips and vegetables outside by the barbecue," Aunt Cat told him.

"Yeah, but I don’t want to leave Dany alone with you. Who knows what you might do to her."

Aunt Cat just glared at him before she noticed Dany and her youngest grandchild were getting along just great as he attempted to tell her he was three.

Talisa laughed, "You’re only two, Baby, remember? He’ll be three in a month, though."

"Ah, well, close enough," Dany smiled at the boy, finding him quite adorable.

"Do me a favor and take him out so he can play with the other kids for a bit before dinner?" Talisa asked Jon, "Otherwise he’ll probably start driving me crazy when it’s time to eat. Don’t worry, I’ll protect Dany. Cat’s being pretty harmless, just making plans to spoil her."  
Jon nodded and took his nephew again, "Great, now she’ll be impossible to live with when we go home."

The women laughed as Jon and Rodrik went back out to the yard.

Once he was gone, grandma Lyarra looked closely at Dany, "Jon treats you well, doesn’t he? He’s always been such a kind boy… devoted and caring."

"Jon treats me wonderfully," Dany answered honestly, "He’s nothing short of amazing."

Sansa sighed when she saw her mother grinning and putting her hands together elatedly. The last thing Catelyn Stark needed was more encouragement.


	38. Of kicking

"Oh good, there you are," Aunt Cat said as she saw both Jon and Bran in the hallway, "Why don’t you go ahead and take the suitcases upstairs?"

"Sure, we were going up anyway so I can show Jon something on my computer," Bran replied.

"It’s not a dirty website, is it?" she asked.

Both her sons rolled their eyes and Jon answered, "No, he wants to show me some sports car."

"Okay, good boys."

"Where’s Dany staying?" Jon asked as he started grabbing suitcases.

"In your room, of course!"

"Then where am I staying?" he responded, fearing the answer.

Bran grinned, "You don’t know? The only people who know the truth is Mom, Dad, Sansa, Arya, Robb, Talisa and me."

"Yeah, so?" Jon said, then saw where he was going, "It’s not like Grandma will notice if we’re sleeping in separate rooms. It’s a big house."

"Maybe, but didn’t Mom tell you that Uncle Benjen and his family are coming tonight and will be staying with us too?"

Jon realized his mother had disappeared and shook his head, "I can’t believe this."

"Please, like it’s so bad? I mean, I know she’s preggers, but I can tell Dany is a pretty cute chick. How does she look when she’s not pregnant?"

"What does it matter?" Jon muttered as they trudged up the stairs.

"Well, I was just thinking, maybe after you two get divorced…. I mean, Robb told me about his theory that she and the kid are a part of the family whether you’re married to her or not, so she’s still be around…"

Jon stopped and turned around to give his brother a look, "Don’t even think about it!"

Bran laughed, "Man, that just said it all!"

"So… tell me to shut the hell up if I am going somewhere you don’t want me too… but how does the father look?" Arya asked Dany as she sat beside her in one of the many lawn chairs in the backyard, "Like, is Grandma right about your daughter having two good-looking parents?"

Dany gave her a small smile, "He is extremely good-looking. I mean, his name is Drogo and it fits. He’s not at all like Jon, though. I mean, Jon’s really good-looking, but in a completely different way. Drogo is the epitome of tall, dark and handsome. You probably think I’m exaggerating, but believe me, he had… still has, I’m sure, women throwing themselves at him."

"I believe you," Arya replied, "So… is that why he’s your ex? He’s got women throwing themselves at him?"

Dany shook her head, "No… it’s a lot more complicated than that. The two of us… we loved each other a lot, but it’s hard… and he’s decided that it does more harm than good for us to be together. He decided that before I got pregnant, though… so, to be fair, he didn’t get me pregnant and then have this revelation."

"Yeah, but I have the feeling you aren’t exactly adoring him, right? Aren’t you a little bit angry with him, even if he isn’t just flaking out on you because he doesn’t want to be a daddy?"

"Oh, I’d be lying if I said I didn’t want to wring his neck a great majority of the time. I loved him and I know that his reasons aren’t just an excuse… but I knew his reasons before I found out I was pregnant… and I still went to him and told him about the baby, thinking he’d change his mind."

"But he didn’t," Arya concluded.

"Nope," Dany shook her head, "I mean, he didn’t just blow me off… at first he thought I would want to have an abortion but I made it clear right away that it wasn’t an option for me… and he accepted that. I suppose in his way, he is still being responsible. Uh… do you promise not to tell Jon about this?"

Arya nodded, the fact that she was agreeing to keep a secret from her own brother for basically a stranger not bothering her, "Sure."

"Well, right away, Drogo told me he would give me money. He’d do everything short of being in our lives. I was hurt and angry, though, and told him I didn’t want his help. Jon knows about that part," she said, taking a deep breath, "What he doesn’t know is that Drogo set up a checking account for me, without my consent, and gave a mutual friend of ours the ATM card and stuff… to give to me. My friend talked me into taking it for emergencies, since I still refuse to take Drogo’s help. I guess it’s wrong, but I never told Jon. I don’t like the idea that Jon thinks I have no money besides what I earn, but I never have taken any from him. Well, besides when we bought all the stuff for the house, but that was before… anyway, I just thought that it would be best if he didn’t know. I don’t think he’d receive it well because he kind of…."

"Hates Drogo?"

"He never said it, but I have the distinct impression that he’s not Drogo’s biggest fan."

"If I know my brother, and I do, he hates him."

"Really? I mean, I know from Jon’s point-of-view, Drogo is a jerk, but hate is such a strong emotion."

Arya smiled, realizing Dany was oblivious to the fact that Jon loved her. She considered enlightening her sister-in-law, but thought better of it… for the time being.

"So… Uncle Benjen is your father’s brother?" Dany asked, leaning her head close to Jon’s as the two of them sat together at one of several tables that had been set up out in the yard for the big barbecue.

Jon nodded and explained, "He’s younger than him, I think about twelve years"

"Ah, I see," Dany replied.

"Overwhelmed?"

"A little… but I think I can handle it," she grinned, "I’m not used to having so many people around."

"Just wait until Grandma’s party when everyone is here," Jon warned her, "You’ll probably end up pulling your hair out."

"Hey Dany, have you picked a name for the baby yet?" Jon’s little ten year old cousin, Alys asked her.

"How do you know Jon isn’t picking the name?" her younger brother, Torrhen, asked.

"Because she’s the one who has to carry around the baby for nine months," Alys retorted, as if it was the most obvious reason in the world.

Dany smiled at the both of them, "I keep picking names, but I always either change my mind or Jon hates them and makes fun of me."

"See, Jon has final say," the eight year old smirked at her brother.

"He doesn’t even get to pick the names… she just lets him give his opinion," Aly said, then grinned at Dany, "Do you like the name Crane?"

"Um… sure."

"Oh good! Lady Crane is my favorite singer and actress, and she’s so pretty and can dance so well! You should name your daughter that!"

"Okay, I am exorcising my fatherly rights and saying that you, Woman," Jon grinned, pointing at Dany, "are absolutely not allowed to name our daughter, Crane!"

Dany tried not to laugh and gave Alys a helpless look, "I’m sorry, but what can I do?"

Alys shook her head mournfully, "I hope I never fall in love and let boys win."

Feeling rather awkward, Dany and Jon focused on their food as Alys and Torrhen bickered about something else. He wasn’t sure how they were going to be able to manage a week of this, especially with his nosy family surrounding them. It had been bad enough before, when they’d lived in Castle Black… but now, after they’d slept together… to sleep next to Dany and act like they were completely in love when they… well, she wasn’t. 

It certainly wouldn’t aid his efforts to stop feeling the way he did for her.

Dany yawned as she climbed in the bed, eager to get to sleep. It had been a long day and she was so exhausted, she didn’t even care that she was sharing the bed with Jon. The thought of doing anything besides sleeping didn’t even enter her mind.

Jon, on the other hand, was all too aware of the fact that the woman he loved would be sleeping beside him. However, he could tell by Dany’s blasé body lenguage that she obviously wasn’t thinking of being tempted to have sex. That helped, he supposed…. all he had to worry about was not touching her.

As he sat down on his side of the bed, he watched her lying on her back with her eyes closed, wondering if she was already asleep. He discovered she wasn’t when she opened her eyes and smiled, putting her hand on her stomach.

"Kicking?" he asked, immediately remembering that night weeks earlier when the baby had kicked for the first time. Dany had been so excited and placed his hand on her belly to feel it. It was absolutely amazing.

Dany nodded and looked at him, "As soon as I’m ready for bed, she’s ready to dance."

"Can I feel?" he asked, holding out his hand. Even after what they’d done, he felt awkward just touching her without her permission.

"Of course," she replied, taking his hand and placing it where the baby was kicking.

They were quiet for a moment, content to feel the baby as she moved inside Dany’s womb. When she calmed, Jon reluctantly pulled his hand away and told her, "You know, judging by the way she dances, I am thinking she’ll be just like her mom."

"Oh God, why do you hate me?" she joked.

"Come on, lets go to sleep."

Yawning again, she nodded, "That sounds heavenly."

Jon turned his bedside lamp off and quietly said, "Goodnight, Dany."

"’Night Jon… thanks."

"For what?"

"For being you."

Jon wasn’t sure how to respond to that, so he didn’t. Instead he just sat in the dark, listening to the sound of her breathing grow more even as Dany fell asleep.

"Aunt Cat, leave her alone!"

"Oh, knock it off, Jon. I’m not doing anything horrible to her!"

As she opened her eyes, Dany smiled, wondering exactly what Jon and his aunt were arguing about. Seeing that they had woken her up, the two of them smiled sheepishly down at her.

"Hi Dany… I’m sorry I didn’t get to wake you in a more pleasant manner," Aunt Cat apologized, giving Jon a pointed look, "but I wanted to ask you if you’d like to join the family for Sept."

"She’s not religious, Aunt"

"I know that, but she might want to come with us anyway."

Dany saw the hopeful look on Aunt Cat’s face, and the way Jon shrugged his shoulders, telling her he didn’t know what she ought to do. Smiling, Dany nodded at her mother-in-law, "I’ll come. How long do I have to get ready?"

Aunt Cat clapped her hands together, "Wonderful! Breakfast will be on the table in half an hour."

She left the two of them alone, a bounce in her step from having gotten her way. Jon shook his head and sighed as he watched his aunt shut the door.

Flopping down at the foot of the bed, he gave Dany a lopsided grin, "Sorry she put you on the spot like that. If you want, I can tell her you aren’t feeling well and changed your mind."

"No, it’s fine," Dany told him, sitting up and climbing out of bed, "I really like your family."

"They like you too," he replied. It was a shame, really. His family loved her, she loved them, he loved her and the baby. It would be perfect… except she didn’t love him.

"Oh, I can’t wait to show you off," Aunt Cat exclaimed, turning her head and smiling at Dany in the backseat.

Her daughter-in-law just gave her a polite smile as she rubbed her stomach and willed it to stop aching. Aunt Cat had shoved so much food down Dany’s throat when she’d shown up for breakfast that she had to wonder if she would ever get hungry again. The woman hadn’t been kidding when she’d said she wanted to fatten Dany up.

"Are you okay?" Jon asked her quietly, seeing her discomfort.

Dany nodded, "Just very, very full."

He chuckled, "Don’t worry, you’ll get used to it."

"Cersei and Olenna are going to think you’re so adorable!"

"Oh, I bet you’re ecstatic about that," Arya said sarcastically in her spot on the opposite side of Dany. 

The three occupants in the backseat smiled at her joke as Aunt Cat went on and on about what people would think of Dany. Nobody even bothered reminding her that she shouldn’t make too big a deal since Dany wasn’t going to be a permanent part of the family.

"Catelyn, you have to let me go home with you," Grandma Lyarra begged her daughter-in-law as they moved up the path to the church. She loved all her grandchildren, but Alys and Torrhen were on her last nerve after bickering the entire way to the church.

"Alright, I’ll make Bran ride with Benjen, then," Aunt Cat replied, then beamed as she saw her longtime friend standing in front of the entrance, "Cersei!"

Cersei Baratheon saw Aunt Cat approaching and rushed over to her, excited to meet the daughter-in-law Aunt Cat had talked endlessly about for months, "Hello, Cat!"

"Mom, you remember my friend, Cersei, right?"

Lyarra smiled and nodded, "It’s good to see you, Dear."

"You too," Cersei smiled, "Now where is she, hmm?"

"She’s coming," Aunt Cat assured her, looking behind her at the rest of her family ten yards away. Robb, Talisa and the kids had arrived soon after they did and everyone else was talking to them.

"Oh, you’re a vision," Cersei exclaimed when at long last Dany and the rest of the family joined them in front of the church. Since she was already very familiar with Aunt Cat's family and Dany was the only pregnant one, it was obvious to her right away that she was the one Aunt Cat always spoke so fondly of.

Dany smiled shyly, "Thank you."

"Dany, this is Cersei," Aunt Cat said, "And Cersei, this is my new daughter."

Jon felt himself pale. Daughter. Not even daughter-in-law anymore. Arya elbowed him in the ribs and grinned. In that moment, Jon realized Robb was absolutely right. Dany was a part of their family for good now. It wasn’t a matter of always having to face the woman he’d married and divorced, only to help her out…. he loved her.. and for the rest of his life, he’d have to see her. Every major family event, there she’d be. What if she got married? He’d have to see the man who won her heart for the rest of his life too.

He was shaken from his thoughts as Cersei hugged him tightly and told him how proud she was to see him being a family man. Nodding politely, he asked about her health and family until she went back to talking to his mother as they all entered the Sept.

Since they were the Starks and not some normal family, they couldn’t just show up at Sept right before service began, sit down and listen, then leave when it’s over. No, they had to arrive early, socialize, then hang out afterwards for a while before they all headed to a restaurant for lunch. It was their Sunday tradition.

Inside the Sept, they found that Sansa already there, holding seats. They’d all settled in, taking up an entire pew with the eighteen of them. Soon after, Olenna Tyrell came up to them, led by Cersei, and beamed down at Dany, who sat at the end of the pew with Jon beside her.

"Oh my, you must be Dany!"

Dany looked questioningly at Jon before smiling up at the woman, "Yes… Hello."

Jon stood up and cordially kissed the woman on the cheek, "Hi Olenna."

Dany also stood and shook the woman’s hand, "It’s very nice to meet you."

"Oh, this is so wonderful. When’s the baby coming?"

"August," she answered, "The 19th."

"Cat, you are so lucky, this baby’s going to be a beauty, I just know it!" Olenna grinned, "She says it’s a girl."

"Yes," Aunt Cat said proudly, standing up as well, "She might be named Lyanna, after Jon’s mother".

"She might?" Jon asked his aunt, surprised, since he’d never heard Dany mention that name. Looking at Dany, he repeated, "She might?"

Dany shrugged, since she’d never even considered the name. She actually liked it, now that she thought of it… so maybe she would name her that.

Cersei laughed, "You two better watch out or Cat will be naming your baby. I wonder how Robb avoided that."

"He’s as stubborn as a mule," Aunt Cat said, "But not my sweet Dany."

"So when will you start spoiling this baby?" Olenna asked.

"Tomorrow," Aunt Cat laughed, "I have to take Dany to the Mall!"

At long last, it was ten o’clock. Olenna and Cersei retreated to their own seats and Dany, Jon and Aunt Cat settled in. Just as the Septon approached the pulpit, Aunt Cat leaned her head close to Jon’s so she could whisper in her nephew’s ear.

"Just so you know, I wouldn’t have been at all upset had I found you and Dany in bed without a stitch on this morning."

Jon blushed furiously as his eyes widened in disbelief that she could ever say such a thing. He was utterly speechless, so Aunt Cat was able to sit smugly as the Septon began speaking.


	39. Of laughs

"Jon, come look at this," Robb said, tugging his brother towards the kitchen door.

Jon sighed, but followed. He had been enjoying just hanging out in the backyard with his father, and various other family members, so he really hoped whatever Robb had to show him was important.

"I just had to show you," he explained, grinning at him as she led him to the living room so that they could peer into the room from the doorway.

Jon immediately saw what he meant. Dany was sitting on the couch with Lyarra half-leaning on her and Rodrik on her lap. Lyarra was reading the three of them a story with a little help from Dany. Jon couldn’t help but smile at the sight, as well as indulge in a little fantasy where he could come home from work and find her like this, only instead of it being his niece and nephew, it was their own children.

Robb took a few steps away from the door so that they could talk without being discovered, "See what I mean?"

Jon nodded, "They’re all getting along famously."

"It’s more than that, they’re my kids, I can tell. She’s going to be a great mother, Jon," Robb told him.

"I have no doubt of that," he replied wistfully.

"I know I am being such an intruding family member here, but is this arrangement as simple as it seems. You know, me, Arya, Sansa and Bran are all concerned" he asked, "Do you really not have any reservations about divorcing Dany and disappearing from her life come January?"

Jon looked down, "It doesn’t matter what I feel… Dany wants this."

Robb was left with a surprised look on his face as Jon brushed past him, not giving him a chance to ask any more questions. Moving back to the doorway to see that Rodrik was rapidly falling asleep on Dany, he decided that if all the siblings wanted answers, they’d have to go through Dany to get them.

"So this is where everyone is," Jon grinned, entering the crowded kitchen the next morning. 

Aunt Cat looked up at him from her spot at the counter with the large grill in front of her and smiled, "Hi Sweetheart, how do pancakes sound?"

"Delicious," he told her, kissing her on the cheek.

"Hi Jon, you sure slept a long time," Torrhen said.

On the stool at the counter next to him, Alys nodded, "We were going to wake you up, but Mom said you needed your sleep. Dany said that when we get to be as old as you, we’ll need to sleep a lot too."

"Oh she did, did she?" Jon asked as his aunt started laughing.

Jon glanced over at Dany sitting at the table next to his grandmother. The older woman was obviously deep into some tale from her past and Dany appeared to be engrossed. Uncle Benjen and his wife were also at the table, reading separate sections of the paper as they ate breakfast as well.

"Why don’t you sit next to Dany, Honey? I’ll have some pancakes made up for you in a minute."

Jon sighed, but complied with her request. After what Robb had said to him the day before, he’d made a conscious effort to not give any of his siblings any more encouragement. He didn’t want the people who didn’t know the truth to get suspicious, but he still made sure not to sit too close to her, whisper in her ear, smile too much… anything that would give them the impression that they could play matchmaker.

"Good Morning, Grandma," Jon said, bending down to kiss the woman on her head as he moved past her to sit next to Dany, whom he merely smiled before taking his seat.

Dany returned the smile, a bit apprehensively, since things between the two of them definitely appeared to be strained and she had no idea why, "Did you sleep well?"

"Like a rock… I can’t believe you managed to get up and dress without waking me."

"I made a point to be quiet, you seemed to need the rest."

"You’d both best get all the rest you can while you can," Grandma Lyarra advised, "Once that little girl comes into the world, you’ll both be exhausted."

Jon’s Uncle Benjen looked up from the paper and grinned at him, "I suggest you do what I did- become a really deep sleeper. You know, so deep that you don’t hear the baby and you don’t even feel it when your wife tries to nudge you awake. After a few nights she gives up on you, because it’s easier just to take the baby herself."

Dany and Jon laughed as Roselyn playfully elbowed her husband and scolded him for not only his ‘deep sleeping,’ but encouraging his nephew to do it as well.

"Here we go," Aunt Cat announced, setting a plate with a high stack of pancakes in front of her nephew. Setting the butter and syrup in front of him, she added, "If you want more, just tell me."

"Okay. Thanks, Aunt Cat," he said, practically drooling at the food in front of him. He’d forgotten how much he’d missed his days at home, where every day started with a delicious meal, "So what’s on the schedule for today?"

"You are spending quality time with your niece, nephews and cousins," his aunt grinned.

"And me," Benjen added.

"What?" Jon asked, a little worried.

"Your aunt wants to do a little shopping, so she thought it’d be nice if all of us girls went. You wouldn’t enjoy it, besides, we can’t leave Uncle Benjen by himself with all the kids," Dany explained.

"I’m a girl! Why do I have to stay with the boys?" Alys complained.

"You wouldn’t enjoy yourself, Alys," Roselyn told her daughter, "We won’t be shopping for anything you’ll be interested in it. Just women’s clothes, maternity clothes, and baby stores."

"Besides, Lyarra will be here soon," Aunt Cat smiled.

"But Lyarra’s only six, I’m ten!"

"You’ll still have fun," Roselyn assured her, "Daddy will take you kids somewhere."

"I will?" Benjen asked, then looked at Jon, "Where are we going?"

Jon shrugged, "No clue."

"The waterslide park!" Torrhen exclaimed, a wide grin spreading on his face.

"Yeah!" Alys agreed, jumping off her stool so she could hop up and down.

"Good morning everyone," Talisa greeted as she and her three children entered the kitchen.

"We’re going to the waterslide park," Alys informed them.

The five children began cheering, although Rodrik didn’t appear to know what was going on and just cheered because the big kids did, before they ran out of the room to expend some of their endless energy in the backyard.

Benjen looked at Jon again, "I guess we’re going to the waterslide park."

Jon left Bran’s bedroom after finally waking him at ten so that he could go with them to the waterpark. He jumped in surprise when he found Dany waiting in the hallway for him.

"Sorry," she said, giving him an apologetic smile, "I just wanted to talk to you alone… and it’s kind of hard to be alone around here."

"I know what you mean… what did you want to talk about?"

"Um, well, I have noticed you seemed to be acting kind of… angry with me," she told him. It had been bothering her since the day before, but she’d thought he might just be in a bad mood. However, he was still acting that way, she decided to confront him about it, "I can’t think of what I might have done to make you mad, so could you clue me in?"

"I’m not mad at you at all," Jon said, shaking his head. Sighing, he continued, "I’m sorry I gave you that impression. It’s just that… well you see how my aunt is so into this whole thing about us being married. She knows the truth, but she prefers the lie… I don’t want to encourage her, so I’m trying to act kind of cool around you so she can’t misinterpret anything as romantic."

"Oh… okay, that makes sense. It’s a good idea," Dany said quietly, even as a part of her was a little sad. She realized she’d very much gotten into pretending to be a couple around Jon’s family, even though she always knew it was all an act. If he was really her husband, there were many occasions where she would have kissed him, hugged him… done all sorts of things to him that she really wanted to do, but knew better. Despite the fact that she had been the one to insist they remain only friends…. she really wanted more.

"Well, you’d better get downstairs, right? Aunt Cat wants to leave soon."

"Yeah… she has a full day planned."

"Don’t let her wear you out," Jon warned, "I know you’re in fabulous shape, but you are pregnant and you do get tired easier than you used to."

Dany smiled and rolled her eyes, "I think I can keep up with your her. Besides, your grandmother will be there too. Mrs. Stark has to keep it slow enough not to wear her out."

"There you are! What did I tell you, Dany? Call me Aunt Cat," Aunt Cat ordered as she came down the hallway towards them with Lyarra trailing behind.

"Sorry, I forgot," Dany apologized.

"We’d better get going," Aunt Cat replied, then kissed her son on his cheek, "You have fun. Don’t worry, I’ll take good care of her."

"She takes good care of herself," Jon said, winning a smile from Dany.

"Don’t you make eyes at any girls in swimsuits at that park," Grandma Lyarra teased.

"Please, Mama, it’s obvious Jon only has eyes for Dany," Aunt Cat said as they headed towards the stairs.

Dany and Jon shared an amused look before she turned and followed the two older women down the stairs.

"Just the same, I’m having Benjen look after you, Jon, just in case you forget you have a beautiful, sweet wife," Grandma Lyarra warned her grandson.

Aunt Cat frowned, "How do you think you are making Dany feel, acting like Jon’s going to be looking at other women just because she’s not around? She’s going to get very insecure."

Dany tried her hardest not to laugh out loud as the two of them argued the rest of the way down the stairs. Shopping that day was sure to be different than it had ever been before. But she really didn’t mind.

"Why can’t we just go to the food court so everyone can get what they want?" Sansa tried to reason with her mother as they led the other three women around the mall.

"Because I don’t like fast food for meals and you know that, Sansa," Aunt Cat replied, "I especially don’t want that when Grandma is with us. She likes a nice, sit-down meal."

Sansa rolled her eyes, "Fine, if you want to waste time we could spend shopping."

"We’re making great time," Aunt Cat assured her before turning around, "Dany, do you like Essossi?"

"I love it," Dany nodded, hoping the two of them would just stop arguing and agree, she and Grandma Lyarra had admitted to each other that they were starving while they sat outside the fitting rooms at the last store, waiting for the other women and offering opinions on the clothes they tried on.

"Good, we’ll go to one," she said triumphantly and led them into a small restaurant.

Luckily, they were immediately seated at a table and brought a basket of tortilla chips and some bowls of salsa to munch on while they perused the menu. A few moments later a young man approached their table and smiled.

"Hi, my name is Stanis, I’ll be your waiter. Were you all ready to order drinks?"

Aunt Cat nodded and smiled, "Actually, I think we all know what we want to eat too, right girls?"

Everyone nodded, so Aunt Cat went ahead and put in her order, followed by Roselyn, Talisa, Sansa and Arya. Dany ordered her chicken enchiladas and requested extra jalapenos, ignoring the amused look Arya shot her way. At last it was Grandma’s turn. Unfortunately, ordering food that wasn’t exactly in common tongue proved to be difficult for her.

"Let’s see, I’d like these… que… que… Dany, dear, do you know what this is?"

Dany leaned over and glanced at the menu where Lyarra was pointing, "Quesadillas."

"Yes, thank you… I’d like those, with chicken in them."

"All right," Stanis replied, writing down her order, "And to drink?"

"Just a water, I think," grandma Lyarra told him, then smiled widely, "Oh, and could I get a… a marijuana?"

Everyone at the table stared at her, their jaws dropped.

"What do you want, Mom?"

"You know, the fancy drink with all the salt."

"Uh, do you mean a margarita?" Sean guessed.

"Yes, yes, that’s it!"

"Okay, then, I can do that," he told her, a very amused look on his face.

The girls, on the other hand, weren’t doing as well. They had their hands over their mouths as they laughed hysterically. Roselyn managed to only grin, while Aunt Cat blushed furiously.

"What did I do?" grandma Lyarra asked innocently.

"You ordered an illegal drug!"

"I didn’t mean to."

Aunt Cat sighed and smacked Sansa on the arm when tears of laughter actually began streaming down her daughter’s face, "Knock it off."

After a few more moments, the girls were finally calm enough to stop laughing completely. As the other woman made polite conversation, Sansa leaned over and whispered in Dany’s ear, "Are you sure you’re going to want to divorce Jon and miss out on stuff like this?"

Dany looked down, not responding, even though she wanted to assure Sansa that the thought of losing Jon and his wonderful family broke her heart. As great as staying married sounded… it was inevitable that they’d end up divorcing. It was just that if she tried to disillusion herself into believing they could be what everyone thought they were, she’d end up with a broken heart… something she didn’t think she could live through again.


	40. Of love

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A little fun shopping, fluff galore!

"Ah, here we are. Finally a store for you, Dany," Roselyn said as they walked into Clothiers, a maternity and baby store, "Poor thing, you’ve spent hours watching the rest of us shop."

"Oh, I didn’t mind… I actually had fun," Dany told her as she looked at the store over.

"This is the best store to get maternity clothes," Talisa told her, "I swore I would wear overalls the entire time I was pregnant with the twins until I found this place."

"Oh Dany, come here! This is so you!" Aunt Cat called, holding up a light blue sundress.

"Do me a favor?" Arya asked Dany quietly, then continued as her sister-in-law nodded, "Let her spoil you? I know we whine a lot, but it’s really not so bad as long as she doesn’t want to buy you something you hate. So as long as you like whatever it is… let her buy it… it’ll make her happy."

Before Dany could respond, Aunt Cat was holding dresses up to her and talking to anyone who would listen about how well it went with whatever and how wonderful her coloring was. The woman became a machine as she grew excited about dressing her new daughter up… sort of like she was a doll. Dany didn’t mind, though… it was nice to be mothered.

Before she knew it, Dany had been shoved into a fitting room where she had tried on countless outfits picked by Aunt Cat that Dany had to admit didn’t look bad as far as maternity clothes went… and was standing in line with her mother-in-law, who way going to pay for a large pile of clothing.

"Mrs. Stark, sorry, Aunt Cat… this really isn’t necessary for you to buy me these things. I have plenty of clothes."

"Nonsense! I don’t live near you so I can’t buy you a little something here and a little something there… I have to buy it all at once."

"You don’t have to buy me anything at all, though," Dany protested, feeling bad about taking advantage of Aunt Cat’s generosity.

"I want to. Make me happy, Sweetling?"

Dany sighed and nodded, "I have no idea how I am going to fit all this in my suitcase, though."

"You can use one of ours… we’ll get it back someday, it’ll be fine. Or maybe I can ship these… don’t worry about it."

"Wait until the next store… baby stuff… she’s going to go completely insane," Sansa grinned as she walked up to them.

"Dany, oh my God, look!" Aunt Cat exclaimed, pointing at a pretty little pink dress with all sorts of ruffles.

"It’s adorable," Dany smiled.

"I bet you can’t wait until you can put the baby in things like this," Aunt Cat commented as she took a closer look.

"Yeah, and she only has a three year wait until the baby can wear it," Arya grinned.

"Have you picked a theme for the nursery yet?" Sansa asked.

Dany nodded, "Clouds… I already have all the bedding for the crib and everything. There’s a cute mobile in that design, but my friend made me wait on it. She thinks it’s a good gift idea."

"Oh, that really frustrated me when I was pregnant," Talisa replied, "I am into instant gratification so I wanted my baby shower when I was about four months along so that I could have everything I needed. I hate waiting."

"But baby showers are so fun," Roselyn said, "You’ll love it, Dany."

"I don’t think I’m having one," Dany told her quietly.

"Why not?"

She shrugged, "I don’t have many close friends… and really only about three close friends. My uncle’s not exactly excited about the baby and he’s sort of not speaking to me, so I don’t think there’s a great interest for anyone to throw me a party."

Roselyn frowned, "Well that’s just awful! I’m so sorry, Dany, I had no idea."

"Oh, it’s not your fault. Besides, I’m doing just fine. I can take care of myself and the baby."

"Of course… besides, it’s not like you’re all alone, you have Jon too."

"Yeah… I have Jon.." Dany nodded half-heartedly.

"Come on, let’s go shopping," Arya sensing that Dany was distressed, and put her hand on her back and leading her further into the store.

Dany soon forgot all about how sucky her life was in reality as soon as she saw the tiny shoes with little pink shoelaces. Grinning, she picked them up and turned to Aunt Cat, "These are absolutely adorable."

"Let’s get them," Aunt Cat responded enthusiastically.

"Oh, I don’t know… they’re forty dragons. That’s a lot of money for something she really won’t need. I mean, I don’t want to deprive her or be cheap… but I can get her some other little sneakers cheaper."

Aunt Cat waved her hand, "You like these sneakers, and so do I."

"Well, to be fair, I haven’t actually looked at any other sneakers. I think I can probably like some that won’t cost me so much."

"These won’t cost you anything. I want to buy my granddaughter some shoes."

Dany looked and saw grandma Lyarra and Roselyn were safely out of hearing distance, "But she’s not your granddaughter… I wouldn’t feel right."

Aunt Cat took Dany’s hand and looked her in the eye, "I know that biologically, she isn’t our granddaughter, but here," she said, putting Dany’s hand on her heart, "she is. And here is all that matters to me and Ned."

Dany felt tears well in her eyes, "You’re so sweet… but you make me feel so bad."

"What for, sweetling?"

"Because I was extremely lucky to have met Jon and for him to do what he did for me… but then I also got to meet you and the rest of the family… you all are so good to me, and it’s not like I’m some great person. I made a huge mistake and now my daughter will grow up without a father… I’m a big screw-up… I don’t deserve all this."

"Yes, you do," Aunt Cat assured her, "Honey, we’re all human and we all make mistakes. Sure, it’s best for a child to have two loving parents, but that’s not always possible. However, it is possible for a child to grow up with just one parent who loves them and turn out just great. You made a mistake. One mistake. From what I understand, the father of this baby isn’t begging you to let him be a part of its life. You’re doing your best with the hand you’ve been dealt."

"I suppose that’s true," Dany said, wiping at a few stray tears that had spilled from her eyes.

"Besides, you never know what might happen. Maybe you won’t be raising her by yourself. A girl like you probably has quite a few suitors."

Dany laughed, "Before, sure, I could get dates… now, I may be able to get some weirdo to ask me out… and after I have this baby… well, most guys aren’t interested in girls with kids."

"Most, not all," Aunt Cat pointed out, having a particular example of such a guy in her mind. She knew, without a doubt, that Jon loved Dany, baby and all.

All she had to do was get Dany to see it.

"Oh my God… please tell me only one of those bags is Dany’s," Jon said as he watched the women enter the house with their arms filled with bags.

"Sorry," Dany apologized, giving him a bright smile.

"Are you kidding? You think Mom is going to go shopping with her and let her leave with only one bag?" Sansa asked, "As it is, Dany tried to argue, which led to a knock-down, drag-out fight between them. It was pretty nasty."

"What? She’s kidding, right?" Jon asked his mother, "You’re too old for that and Dany’s pregnant!"

"Old! Don’t call me old," Aunt Cat scolded him as Dany laughed.

Both of them passed without answering his question, leaving him with a frown until Roselyn patted his arm and smiled, "Don’t worry, she was kidding."


	41. Of hard truths

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> When grandma's speaking, you listen

For the second morning in a row, Jon awoke in bed alone. Glancing at the clock on his nightstand, he saw it was half past nine. He was generally an early riser, but there was a three hour time difference, so he really wasn’t doing that bad. What he wanted to know was how was Dany waking up and getting ready without waking him as well.

Rolling out of bed, he stretched and walked into the attached bathroom to shower. Twenty minutes later, he was clean, dressed and ready to face the world. Wandering down to the kitchen, he was surprised to find it empty as well. He began to wonder just where everyone was and started looking around. They wouldn’t have all left him alone in the house, would they?

Entering the living room, he found his niece, nephews and cousins planted in front of the television, watching cartoons. Hearing him enter, Rickard looked up and grinned.

"Uncle Jon!"

"Hi guys… where’s everyone else?"

"Grandpa and Uncle Benjen are in the garage, all the rest all went out for breakfast and to go to the spa," Lyarra informed him.

"Ah, I see," Jon replied, shaking his head. His aunt sure was going all out with Dany… in fact, he had to wonder if she actually did want the two of them to get together. After all, she wasn’t giving them much time with one another.

He walked back through the house to the garage to find his father and uncle tinkering with the engine of Ned’s classic 1969 Mustang, "Morning."

"Morning, Jon," Ned replied.

"How’d you sleep?" Benjen asked.

"Great, although I’d prefer to not have to wake up and wonder where Dany and everyone else is."

"Ahh, yes, Cat did quite a good job of waking her without waking you, now, didn’t she? They just left a while ago…."

"For breakfast and a day at the spa. Lyarra filled me in."

Ned nodded, "Cat says every pregnant woman needs pampering. Apparently you aren’t coming close to cutting it."

Benjen laughed, "Boy, you better get your act together or Cat’s going to have to straighten you out and teach you some things."

"I treat Dany just fine," Jon said defensively.

"Just fine doesn’t cut it, especially when they’re pregnant. You have to dote," Benjen advised.

Ned nodded and grinned, having heard all about how Jon and Dany just had to get together, Catelyn refused to let them divorced as they had planned. Since he had to agree… he thought he’d join in the effort.

"Don’t worry, we’ve booked a sitter, so tonight the adults are all going out and you can start being romantic," he told his son, then went back the Mustang’s engine. Benjen soon followed suit and Jon gave up on them, deciding to find some other way to entertain himself in the house. He couldn’t believe how horrible his family was. It would almost had been better if they had been furious with him about marrying Dany. At least then he wouldn’t have to endure them trying to force him to do something he already wanted more than anything… but knew it could never happen because Dany loved some man instead of him.

"See, this is what it’s all about."

"What?" Dany asked Talisa, her voice heavy as she relaxed under the skilled hands of her masseuse.

"Being pregnant… it’s supposed to be nine months of pampering, not just one day at the spa."

Dany chuckled, "Maybe when you are surrounded by family members and have a husband, but I am preparing for the sometimes lonely life of a single parent whose family isn’t speaking to her."

"Ugh, that sounds so depressing," Sansa wrinkled her nose. “Jon says you have friends that are just like family to you and you do have a husband. I’m telling you, they are all waiting for you to milk sympathy from them."

Dany rolled her eyes, "Sansa, your brother did me a huge favor marrying me. I’m not going to now make the poor guy wait on me."

"Dany, you are absolutely clueless and I am tired of letting you try to figure this out yourself. Jon wants you to make him cater to your every whim. Nothing would make him happier."

"Why do you say that?" she asked, lifting her head and ignoring the fact that a moment earlier she’d been about to fall asleep.

Sansa was about to blurt out the fact that Jon was hopelessly in love with Dany when both their massages ended.

"If you ladies are ready, I believe it’s time for your hair appointments," the masseuse informed them.

Whimpering, Sansa sat up and climbed off the bed as Dany’s masseuse helped her get on her feet.

"You know, Miss, if you come visit me in a few months, I actually have a few techniques that can help induce contractions… when the time comes," Dany’s masseuse told her.

"Oh, well that’s very nice, but I live in Dragonstone," she told her.

"However, if my mother’s dreams come true, she’ll be moving here shortly, so you may see her again after all," Sansa grinned before pulling a wide-eyed Dany out of the room.

"What are you talking about?" she hissed.

"Oh come on, you can’t tell me you’d be surprised to hear my mom would love having you and Jon here in Winterfell where she can see you both all the time."

"Well… no, now that I think about it, but still…"

"I’m going to give it to you straight, Dany. My mom loves you like a daughter… and I have to wonder if she could love this baby any more if it was really Jon’s. She doesn’t want you guys to get divorced…. nothing would make her happier than if you and Jon told her that you guys were in love and planning on staying married and raising this baby together."

Dany couldn’t seem to summon up a response, but it didn’t matter because Sansa tugged her into a large room where they were to have their hair done. She was soon distracted as Aunt Cat and a stylist tried to figure out what they could do with her hair since she was pregnant and not much would hold well. Dany just prayed that if they decided to try and dye it, Aunt Cat wouldn’t want it some way different color…. Since Dany didn’t want that and had yet to win an argument with her mother-in-law.

"Jon!" Aunt Cat screamed upon entering the house, "Get over here this instant! You have to see your beautiful wife!"

Dany blushed furiously and turned to Sansa, "Why is she doing this to me?"

Sansa shrugged innocently before leaving Dany in the foyer, eager to show off her new highlights to her husband, who was supposed to be waiting in the living room. Jon passed her upon entering the foyer, wishing his mother would shut up, until he saw Dany….

"Wow," he uttered, taken aback by her appearance.

"Do you like it?" she asked, gesturing to her hair.

"I love it… I mean, there was nothing wrong your hair before, but this is a really nice cut."

"Isn’t it?" Aunt Cat grinned, "No matter how nice a girl looks, change is always good. I would have loved to add some highlights to her hair, but pregnant women have awful hair. So I had Baelish cut a bit of her hair."

"She’s not a doll," Jon said, not taking his eyes off of Dany. She really did look fantastic. Even though he’d always thought she’d had beautiful hair, now that it was a little under the shoulder-length with soft curls, she looked more gorgeous than ever.

"Oh, I don’t know, she certainly looks as cute as a doll to me," Aunt Cat joked, giving her daughter-in-law a hug, "Why don’t you two go sit down, relax for a bit? We’re going out for dinner tonight."

"Do you really think it looks nice?" Dany asked as she and Jon were left alone in the foyer, "I’ve had it this short before, and I liked it, but I always thought I looked better with longer hair."

"You look great with long hair… but you look even better with shorter hair," he assured her.

"Good," she smiled, "Plus, your aunt pointed out that shorter hair is good when you have a baby."

"She’s right… just wait until… what’s the baby’s name now?"

Not offended, since she did tend to change her mind about the baby’s name a little too frequently for Jon to be able to keep up, Dany said, "Vysenia"

Jon made a face, but continued, "When Vysenia gets old enough to start grabbing things, you do not want her to get a death grip on your hair."

"Sounds painful," she smiled.

"Hey, want to go watch TV or something in the living room? Last time I checked, it was deserted so we can have some of that rare quiet time."

"Absolutely," Dany laughed, following Jon down the hall.

Luckily the living room was still unoccupied, so the two of them were able to sit on the couch alone. Jon grabbed the remote and turned on the television, hoping something more exciting than the news was on. It was strange, when he was at home, living his normal day to day life, he enjoyed keeping up on all the news of the world. However, when he went on vacation, he liked to take a vacation from it all.

"Um, I don’t think your plan to not encourage your aunt is succeeding," Dany said after a few minutes.

Jon turned his head and gave her a lopsided smile, "I know it’s not. What tipped you off?"

"Well.. I know she has to act for your uncle and grandmother’s benefit, but I still get this feeling that even if they hadn’t been around, she’d still talk and behave like I’m really her daughter-in-law," she told him, "Plus, I think Sansa and Arya are in on it."

Jon rolled his eyes, "I’m sorry, I’ll talk to them."

"Don’t worry about it," she said, reaching for his hand and squeezing it without thinking. Awkwardly, she pulled back and averted her eyes, "It’s not hurting me, I just wanted to let you know."

"Am I interrupting?" grandma Lyarra asked, smiling warmly at them from the foyer.

Dany grinned, "Not at all. Did you need something?"

"No, and if I did, I wouldn’t ask you. Sweetling, you are in no condition to be helping me," grandma Lyarra told her as she walked into the room and settled on the loveseat, "Jon, you’ve done well. You married a good woman, I’m proud of you."

Jon smiled shyly, "Thanks Grandma."

"You know, I mentioned this to your father and he said I shouldn’t push you two, but it’s really bothering me. I’m turning seventy-five tomorrow, and I think that entitles me to say what I want. I’m old and us old people get to poke their noses where they don’t belong, say rude things… do whatever we want."

Dany couldn’t help but smile, despite the fact that she was a little worried about what grandma Lyarra might say.

"Anyhow, what I wanted to talk to you about was your wedding. Ned told me you two eloped in Oldtown," Lyarra sighed, "I know that you got Dany in trouble, Jon, so you two were in a hurry, but I really wish I could have been at your wedding. And I know it’s actually breaking your aunt’s heart that she wasn’t there. Also, I know you two have your difficulties right now, Dany, but I just know your uncle will always regret missing his own niece’s wedding."

Jon nodded, "It would have been nicer to do it the right way, but we were in a hurry. Besides, in the grand scheme of things, what does it really matter? We just don’t have the memories of a big wedding, but I still.. love Dany… and she loves me… and we love our baby."

Dany felt tears well in her eyes, wishing it was as simple as Jon said. Nothing would have made her happier in that instant than to be able to believe in the fantasy… to not know Jon was lying.

"Jon, they may just be memories, but memories are important. You don’t think Dany would love to get all dressed up in a wedding gown and have a special day that every girl dreams of? She deserves it," Lyarra said, then stood back up, "I know this is something you two need to think about and discuss… that’s all I am asking you to do."

"But Grandma, we’re married. We can’t go back and change that."

"No… but you can remarry! It would make me so happy… and your family… Dany… everyone."

"I, uh… I don’t think I’d be anything but miserable waddling around in white," Dany said, "Besides, the whole wearing white thing is supposed to be symbolic… but being pregnant kind of makes it ridiculous."

Grandma Lyarra smiled, "I didn’t say it had to be right away. I would completely understand if you two waited until after the baby came. She won’t be born out of wedlock. Promise to consider it?"

The both of them reluctantly nodded, remaining silent as a satisfied grandma Lyarra left them alone again. After a moment, Dany looked sadly at Jon.

"What are we going to do?"

He shrugged, "Nothing. Besides what we already have planned, anyway. We go back home, live like we’ve been living, you have this baby in August, we get divorced in January”.

"You honestly don’t think she’ll ask again before we leave, or pester your aunt until she gets on our case about it too? She’ll just drop this and never bring it up again for seven months when we tell her we were wrong and don’t love each other and don’t want to raise this baby together?"

"We’ll lie… pacify her. She said it herself, she’d understand if we waited until after the baby is born. We can tell her we’ll remarry after… we can say that you need some time because babies are so tiring and you want to get back to your fighting weight, so we’ll get married, like, six months after you have the baby. But then two months before that, we decide it’s not working out and file for divorce."

"What if she thinks it’s just stress from the baby and planning a wedding? I can just imagine her not accepting it and making me feel really guilty," Dany sighed.

"Don’t worry about it," he said.

"I can’t stop myself. God, this is really insane. It’s one lie on top of another and now it’s getting to the point where it’s hard to separate fact from fiction."

"I’ve got it straight," Jon assured her, gently massaging her shoulder, "We’ll be fine. Don’t you trust me?"

Dany nodded slowly, "I feel really crappy about this, though."

Before Jon could continue promising her that this was the right thing to do and everything would work out, Lyarra skipped into the room and smiled widely at Dany, "Wow, you look real pretty aunt Dany."

Dany returned the smile, "Thank you, you really like my hair?"

"Yeah, I do," the little girl nodded, "Grandma says you gotta go change."

"I do?"

"For dinner, you have to change clothes."

Dany frowned at Jon, "Are we going somewhere really nice?"

Jon shrugged, "I have no idea."

"Well, how am I supposed to dress?"

Lyarra crossed her arms over her chest and gave them a smug look, "Don’t worry about it, Grandma’s picking your clothes out for you."

Jon burst out laughing, "My God, she does think you’re a doll."

"She’s picking clothes out for you too, Uncle Jon."

Dany smirked as she pushed herself up off the couch, "I wonder what she thinks you are…."


	42. Of dances

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A little bit of fluff

"Dany, I’m so glad you had that steak. You need meat, real meat, none of that chicken," Aunt Cat smiled at her as the family finished up their meals.

"Too bad there aren’t any vegetarians around let her know that chicken is meat," Jon muttered to Dany.

Dany smiled, but managed not to laugh out loud.

"Why do you care what she eats?" Ned asked his wife.

"Do you want her to be anemic? Do you want our grandchild to be ill before she is even born?"

Dany and Jon were at the point of wanting to laugh so much, it was painful not to. Luckily, Ned knew better than to argue with Aunt Cat when she was feeling melodramatic and dropped the subject. 

"So Dany, have you chosen a birth method?" Talisa asked her.

"Yeah, she’s planning on having the kid pop out," Arya smirked.

Sansa kicked her younger sister under the table. Dany smiled and shrugged, "I haven’t really picked anything."

"You should look into birthing classes," Talisa told her.

"Oh, well, that requires a partner and…" Dany froze as she realized quite a few of the people at the table thought Jon was her daughter’s father and they were a real couple, so she needed a reason he couldn’t help her with those classes, "And, um… with Jon’s job and my bad timing, I’ll probably go into labor when he’s out of town, so why drag him to childbirth classes?"

"What?!" Aunt Cat exclaimed, "Jon, you should insist on being your wife’s coach!"

Knowing what was good for him, Jon nodded, "In my defense, Dany never even mentioned this to me. I didn’t tell her I wouldn’t be her coach."

"Well you better not have, because you are going to!" Aunt Cat insisted.

Jon nodded again and went back to his dinner. Dany leaned closer to him and whispered as softly as possible, "I am so sorry… don’t worry, I think she’s just saying it for everyone else’s benefit."

Jon smiled and whispered back, "No, she’s not. She means it."

"Well, she’ll never know. I don’t expect you to be my coach."

Jon turned his head and looked at her seriously, "No, I want to do it. Please?"

Dany was still for a moment before she smiled and nodded, "If you’re sure."

"I am," he assured her.

A song came on from the jukebox that Dany actually knew and she smiled upon hearing it, since she actually liked it. The steakhouse had a definite country theme, which she wasn’t a big fan of, so it was nice to hear something familiar.

"This is a nice song," grandma Lyarra commented to Dany.

Dany nodded, "It’s very romantic."

"Yes, it is!" grandma agreed enthusiastically, "You know what would be wonderful?"

"What?"

"If you two would go dance to this!"

Dany and Jon paled and shared a look, trying to figure out a way to get out of it. Turning back to grandma Lyarra, Dany shook her head, "I’m huge and clumsy… I can’t dance."

"Plus, I have always hated dancing," Jon added.

Grandma Lyarra waved her hand, "You may hate dancing, but you won’t hate dancing with Dany. It’s different when you love your partner."

"Grandma, we really don’t want to."

"Jon, would you take your wife and dance and make me happy?" grandma pleaded.

Aunt Cat jumped in, knowing at this point, she couldn’t be blamed for matchmaking, "It wouldn’t kill you… and don’t you want to make Grandma happy?"

Sighing, Jon reluctantly stood and pulled Dany’s chair out for her before leading her to the area where a few other couples were dancing.

Almost nervously, the two began to slowly sway together to the beat of the music. Dany looked up at Jon and gave him a small smile, "This isn’t so bad, right?"

Jon shook his head, "Nah… easy to dance to. It’s just that I don’t like encouraging them. If I didn’t know better, I’d think aunt Cat actually had Grandma in on this."

"Don’t be paranoid," Dany laughed, "I don’t think your grandmother could ever be even slightly dishonest. She seems so sweet and kind and… wonderful."

"Don’t underestimate them," Jon warned her, "I doubt Grandma knows the truth, but my aunt wants us together and she’s not afraid to manipulate to get what she wants. I wouldn’t put it past her to try and make us feel guilty about tricking Grandma to do it."

Dany shrugged her shoulders, "Well, it doesn’t matter. She can try, but you and I know how it is, and nothing can change that. I feel bad about hurting your grandma, but what can we do?"

"Exactly… there’s no going back now, so we just have to deal. Just remember not to let her get to you."

As the song ended, the two of them took a step apart and Dany smiled up at him, "It’s a deal."

*

"How’s this?"

"A little higher, Arya," Dany replied from her position on the ground.

Jon kept his side of the big ‘Happy Birthday’ banner in position while his younger sister lifted the other end a bit and asked, "Better?"

"Perfect!" she smiled, clapping her hands together, "Your grandmother is going to be so happy when she sees this."

"That’s right, we’re doing this for Grandma," Jon said as he and Arya secured the banner and climbed down their respective ladders, "In all her ordering everyone around, I thought it was for Aunt Cat."

Arya smirked, "Being so far away hasn’t been good for you, you’ve forgotten that Mom always orders everyone around."

"You guys are mean," Dany protested, knowing Aunt Cat was a bit bossy, but she was also quite endearing.

"No, in this instance, they aren’t," Sansa told her as she passed by with a half dozen balloons.

"You are just getting off easy, the rest of us have to do work while you stand around and tell us if things are straight," Jon teased.

Dany frowned, hating the feeling of being the only one not pitching in, "I want to help, but she thinks I’m totally incapacitated because I’m pregnant. But I will help if you give me a job."

He smiled and patted her arm affectionately, "I was just kidding, we don’t want you overexerting yourself."

"Jon, I’m pregnant, not an invalid!"

"I wouldn’t feel right making you do work… besides, I think the decorating is about done."

"Yeah, lunch break!" Arya grinned and rushed past the two of them to the back door.

"Boy, I never thought I’d see anyone more excited about a meal than you, but there ya go!" Jon exclaimed.

"God gods, is it pick on Dany day?" Dany asked rhetorically before turning and following Arya.

Confused, Jon followed her. Was she honestly upset? And why?

After they’d all had lunch, Aunt Cat directed Jon to go look for some old photo album in the attic. Begrudgingly, he headed up the stairs, hoping that maybe his absence would help Dany forgive him. She’d hardly said two words or even looked at him all through lunch. Who knew she’d ever get so mad about a little teasing?

Soon after Jon had left the room, Aunt Cat had presented Arya with a list and ordered her to take Dany along with her to the grocery store to pick up all the last minute items. Eager to get out of the house, the both of them quickly obeyed.

"So, why are you mad at Jon?" Arya asked Dany as soon as they had backed out of the driveway.

"He made fun of how much food I eat," Dany frowned.

"Well, that’s rude. You’re pregnant, it’s supposed to affect your eating habits," she replied, "Plus, you’re around my mother and she can be really pushy about eating more, so you’re just saving your sanity. Besides, from what I’ve seen, you don’t eat that much. I can’t believe Jon had the nerve to be mean to you about it!"

Dany sighed, "Well, you know, now I realize he wasn’t actually mean… it was more of a verbal jab… teasing, really. I don’t know, it just made me mad at first. Poor Jon… he’s a victim of my raging hormones," she chuckled.

Arya grinned, "He’ll survive."

"Yeah, but… sometimes I feel really bad because he doesn’t deserve this, you know? He’s not the one who got me pregnant, it’s not his fault. The father of my baby should be the one dealing with my crap."

"True," Arya nodded, "He’s not around at all?"

Dany shook her head, "He lives in King’s Landing."

"But he does know? I mean, don’t get mad, I just wanted to be sure that it wasn’t just that you know that the father isn’t responsible enough or something. I’m kind of missing the details."

"He knows… he’s the first one I told. He’s almost excessively responsible at times, and I loved him. I guess a part of my heart will always be his. But when we were together, there were problems… problems that would go away if we were apart, so he moved to King’s Landing. When I got pregnant, though, I thought we ought to deal with those problems so that we could raise our child together."

"But he didn’t."

"Nope," she smiled sadly, "He thinks the problems are too great, that the better solution if for him to never know our daughter. To his credit, he’s very willing to support us financially… but without him there emotionally, it’s still hard."

"I’m really sorry, Dany. I don’t know you all that well, but I can tell that you’re a good person… you deserve better than that."

"Thanks," she said, then added, "Don’t think he’s a bad guy, because he really isn’t. I just don’t agree with his decision… and I’m a little mad at how he makes his decision the final one."

"Well, don’t kid yourself into thinking that it won’t make his ass grass if he ever does come to town and runs into Jon," Arya told her.

"You really think so?"

"Yes! Come on, you don’t think Jon doesn’t care about what this guy did?"

"Well, no…. Jon doesn’t agree with what he did, but he’s so… together. I can’t imagine Jon getting in a physical fight with anyone unless it was life or death… or something a lot more important than some guy who hurt me."

"You really don’t see that Jon’s in love with you?"

Dany paled, "What?"

"He loves you. Don’t tell me you can’t see it."

She tried to come up with a response, but was really at a loss for words. First Sansa and now, Arya… plus Aunt Cat continually hinted that Jon a lot more than friendship for her. But still… despite all that and despite Jon’s own admission, she still couldn’t accept that Jon was truly in love with her. Dany and love added up to gut wrenching pain and heartbreak, so she had to avoid this at all costs.

"He doesn’t, you’re mistaken."

"Dany, he’s my brother. I know Jon very very well. I see how he looks at you and how he acts around you. It’s love, trust me."

"We’re good friends."

Arya laughed, "I’ve seen him with friends. Trust me, he doesn’t act the same way around them as he does you."

"I don’t think he loves me."

Arya was silent for a moment before she asked, "You don’t love him back? I mean, like I said, I don’t know you that well, but I thought maybe…"

"I love him in my own way… but it doesn’t matter if I love him like a friend or I love him like a husband… it’s very complicated, Arya, and we can’t be…. what we pretend to be."

Arya knew that there was a whole big story that she didn’t know about, but it was probably best to let it drop… for the time being. At least now she was positive Dany did love Jon. Once they got to the bottom of things… hopefully she’d stay her sister-in-law.

She couldn’t help it if she had her mother’s prying genes!


	43. Of parties

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Grandma's birthday party is here!

"Where did Dany go?" Jon asked as he handed his aunt the dusty photo album.

"Oh, I sent her with Arya to pick up a few things from the grocery store," she told him as she began wiping off the album and smiled widely at him, "They’ll probably be back in a while. Do you miss her?"

Jon rolled his eyes, "No, I was just wondering."

"It would be alright if you missed her."

"Thanks, that’s good to know."

"I bet she misses you!"

"No, aunt Cat, she doesn’t. She’s actually mad at me right now."

Aunt Cat gasped, "Why? What did you do?"

"I don’t know," he shrugged, "All I did was tease her, and that doesn’t usually bother her, but she got all mad today."

"You shouldn’t tease her! Poor Dany!"

"I’m sorry, okay? I’ll apologize when I see her."

"You’d better," Aunt Cat said, "Oh, and don’t you really love her new haircut?"

"It’s very nice."

"Yes, and she looks so beautiful, doesn’t she? She looked beautiful before, but even more now! I think you need to tell her how beautiful she looks."

"I can’t go around telling Dany she’s beautiful and rocks my world and all that. No matter how much you wish it was true, we’re not a real couple and it’s not appropriate."

"Jon," Aunt Cat pleaded, grabbing her nephew’s hand, "I’m at the end of my rope. Please, why can’t you two make me the happiest woman on Earth and realize that you’re meant to be together? I’m practically sick, I am so stressed out about this."

"Because, aunt, we can’t just decide to spend the rest of our lives together to make you happy. We need to be happy too!"

"You don’t think Dany could make you happy?"

Jon sighed and shrugged his shoulders, "I can’t say…. But I can say that Dany doesn’t think I can make her happy. She doesn’t want this, so it doesn’t matter."

Before Aunt Cat could ask why he thought that, he was gone.

"I don’t believe this," Arya lamented as he attempted to start the car one more time.

"I don’t understand, it seemed fine before," Dany said.

Running her hands over her face, Arya replied, "It was fine before. I have no idea what’s wrong with it!"

"Do you know anything about cars? Maybe you could look at the engine or something."

"No… my dad taught my brothers a ton of stuff about cars, but I was never interested. Jon is going to be in his glory… I’m going to have to call mother to get some to come to us."

Dany was quiet while Arya pulled out her cell phone and explained their situation to her mother. After she hung up, she turned to her and said, "It’ll be probably twenty minutes before someone gets down here. They’re bringing a truck to tow my car."

"Well that’s good. Isn’t this car pretty new?"

"Yeah! Anyway… want to go grab an ice cream? There’s a great place around the corner."

Dany smiled, "I love ice cream."

Jon tried to force himself to stop grinning as he drove down the street where Arya was supposed to be parked. It really wasn’t funny that his wife and sister were stranded… but after all the times Arya had made fun of Robb and him, it would be nice to really rub it in. 

However, Dany was already mad at him. If she saw him being amused at her bad luck, she would only get angrier.

Seeing Arya leaning against the back of his Camaro, Jon went ahead and double parked the truck. Jumping out, he asked, "Where’s Dany?"

"She had to use the restroom. Uh, I bought her a banana split and she’s still eating it… I suggest you don’t comment."

Jon sighed, "She told you how I teased her?"

"Yeah… man are you a doofus," Arya laughed.

"Oh, you’re one to talk. You know shit about cars and got yourself and Dany stuck."

"It’s not my fault the stupid car isn’t working."

Before Jon could retort, Dany came around the corner with a plastic container holding her banana split. He made a point not to look like he even noticed the food and gave her a tentative smile, "Hi Dany."

"Hi… good, you made it here fast."

"Yeah, I didn’t want you overexposed to Arya’s bad influence. Um… I’m sorry about earlier, I didn’t mean."

Dany waved her hand absently, "Don’t worry, I was being flaky. Sorry I got crabby at you."

"I’m sure he deserved it, can we get to work now?"

Jon rolled his eyes at his sister, but nodded, "Dany, I need you to go get in the Camaro and put it in neutral and steer so that Arya and I can push it out of the spot and I can hook it up to the truck, got it?"

Dany nodded and climbed in the driver’s side of the car. They stood in front of the car, ready to push when they got a signal, but instead Dany leaned her head out the window and asked, "Um, isn’t it like your car won’t start if it’s not in park or neutral?"

"Yeah…" Jon answered slowly.

"Oh, then maybe the problem is just that Arya left it in drive."

Jon shot his sister a murderous look. Feebly, Arya handed Dany the keys so she could see if that was a problem. Sure enough, a moment later the car started right up.

Trying not to laugh, Arya looked at his brother and said, "I’m sorry, I totally didn’t notice."

"You’re such an idiot," Jon shook his head, then helped Dany out of the car, "Want to ride home with me?"

"Go with him, Dany, then you guys can neck," Arya joked as she climbed in the driver’s seat.

They hardly had a chance to give him a dirty look before Arya was zooming out of her parking spot. At six months pregnant, getting up in the rather high truck cab proved to be difficult for Dany, especially while she clutched her banana split. Jon practically lifted her into the seat, but she was in.

Once they started heading home, Dany broke the silence by confessing, "I’m a little nervous about tonight."

"What for?"

"Well, I’m going to be meeting your whole family and lying to them. It just seems so… nerve-wracking."

"It’ll be fine, don’t worry."

"Don’t you think after… we get divorced… when you come home and see people who didn’t know the truth, it’ll be weird?"

"Nah… it’s not like I am the first person in the entire family to get divorced. Crazy Cousin Meera who you’ll meet tonight, she divorced her husband fifteen years ago when he cheated on her."

"Why do you call her crazy?"

Jon tried to think of why he did call her that, then remembered, "It’s because her husband begged her to take him back and she refused."

"And you think she’s crazy for that?"

"No, actually, now that you mention it. I’ve just heard my dad and uncle call her crazy all my life."

"Well, it’s wrong. You shouldn’t call her crazy anymore."

"Okay, I won’t," he conceded, happy that he had at least gotten her mind of her nervousness. He really didn’t want to go on about what life would be like after Dany. Just the idea of Dany not being his wife anymore made his heart hurt.

"Oh, you must be so excited. A new husband and a baby!" Jon’s aunt smiled as she patted Dany’s belly.

Arya pasted a smile on her face, "All her dreams have come true!"

She put her hand to her chest, oblivious to the fact that Arya was making fun of her, and sighed, "It warms my heart!"

"Yes…. Why don’t you have some punch, aunt? I really should introduce Dany to everyone."

"All right, but Dany, I want to talk to you later."

"I look forward to it. Nice meeting you," Dany replied before she and Arya were out of earshot and able to giggle.

"God, some of my family is so old fashioned," Arya groaned.

Dany nodded, feeling somber as she remembered the fact that while she was the little pregnant wife right now, she’d be that horrible woman who was divorced from Jon in a matter of months. Arya sensed the change in Dany’s mood, but opted not to comment. Instead, she’d just try to make Dany feel better through family love… which she fortunately had plenty of.

"Oh, here’s Brienne," Arya announced as the two of them approached a tall blonde in her early thirties, "this is Jon’s wife, Dany. Dany, this is our cousin, Brienne. Don’t worry, she won’t tell you how great it is that you’re barefoot, pregnant and you caught a man."

Stacey laughed, "I see you met my mother."

"Yes, she was… sweet."

"And clueless, but what are you going to do," Brienne replied, gently hugging Dany, "I’ve heard so much about you for months now, it’s great to finally meet you."

"I feel sorry for you," Robb told his brother as he sat down on the couch next to him."

Jon frowned, "What for?"

"Because after you divorce Dany, I wouldn’t be surprised if quite a few members of the family end up mad at you. She’s a big hit," Robb explained, then continued when he saw Jon’s exasperated expression, "Don’t get all mad… I’m not participating in Mom’s matchmaking scheme… just making an observation. Although, for the record, I don’t see why you don’t stay married to her. I find married life preferable to being a bachelor and from what I have seen, you could do a lot worse than Dany. Of course, I don’t live with her, so it’s possible she’s a total freak. Is she a total freak?"

"No, she’s very unfreakish," Jon admitted, "There’s absolutely nothing wrong with her."

"Then why not?"

Jon looked down, "Because it’s the year 2019. I can’t just decide to stay married to Dany and not care about what she wants."

"Oh… so you two have discussed this?"

"Something like that. She knows that I am not averse to a real romantic relationship… but she loves the father."

"She can’t love you both?"

"Apparently not."

Robb frowned, since he’d seen the way Dany had looked at his brother. She certainly played the part of loving wife well, if Jon was correct. Hell, she should move to Hollywood because as far as he was concerned, she could win an Oscar for her performance as Mrs. Jon Snow.

"Dany, come sit with me," grandma Lyarra said, patting the couch beside her.

Dany sat down and smiled at the older woman, "Are you enjoying your party?"

"Yes… it’s so nice seeing everyone. Especially the young people, like you and Jon. When I look at the two of you, it reminds me of myself, so many years ago. You make sure you enjoy this time, Dany. Before you know it, your baby will be all grown up and on her own and you’ll wonder where the years went."

She nodded, "I’m making a point to cherish every stage of my pregnancy. I kind of enjoy how close I am to her, with her inside me. But that doesn’t make me any less excited for when she’s not inside me anymore and I can see my daughter."

"You’ll make a wonderful mother," Lyarra told her, "You’re already a wonderful wife. I’m so glad Jon found you. I always worried about him. He’s so giving…. it would be easy for a lot of people without much integrity to take advantage of him… but he found you and you’re not like that. You’re deserving of him. I’d even say he’s lucky to have found you."

Dany felt tears in her eyes, she was so touched by the woman’s words, "That’s so kind of you to say."

Grandma Lyarra tenderly touched the girl’s cheek, "It’s the truth. When you live as long as I do, the truth is easier to see. You have no idea how happy I am to see Jon all settled with a good woman… having a child of his own. I feel so… content."

Dany’s heart began to ache as she once again thought how this was only temporary and all an act. She’d made this woman happy by lying to her. What kind of horrible person was she? Looking around, she found so many friendly faces. Everyone had been so kind to her, welcomed her into their family with open arms… and she’d lied to them.

"Well, I’d better go find Catelyn. I want her to enjoy this party, not worry about having everything perfect the whole time," grandma Lyarra said as she stood.

Dany managed a weak smile, grateful for the woman’s departure. She’d developed a burning desire to get away from everyone and now she wouldn’t have to be rude to one of the sweetest people she’d ever met.

Pushing herself up off the couch, Dany moved quickly through the room, grateful that nobody seemed to notice her and try to start a conversation. She felt like she was suffocating with all these people she’d deceived surrounding her.

Heading up the stairs, Dany entered the room she was sharing with Jon, sat on the bed, and burst into tears.


	44. Of getting back home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The trip to Winterfell comes to an end

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know it's a lot of updates, but I needed to finish the Stark trip to move the story onward. Hope you enjoy it!

"Jon, have you seen Dany?" Aunt Cat asked her nephew, a worried look on her face, "I haven’t been able to find her anywhere."

Jon shook his head and stood up from his seat around one of several tables set up for dinner. His aunt had ordered him to his seat a few minutes earlier and he’d obeyed, making conversation with his cousins while he waited for everyone to be seated so they could eat, "I’ll find her."

He wandered through the house, glancing quickly into rooms and not finding Dany in any of them. Aunt Cat followed him closely, telling him that she’d already looked all over the downstairs and she was really starting to worry, because Dany hadn’t told anyone she was going somewhere.

"Aunt, I’m sure Dany’s fine. Nobody kidnapped her… she’s around here somewhere," Jon assured her as he started climbing the stairs, "You don’t have to worry. Why don’t you go get everyone ready? I’ll get Dany down there… I’m sure you have her sitting next to me."

"Of course I do," Aunt Cat replied, "But I can’t think about dinner at a time like this!"

Jon rolled his eyes; she made everything a big drama.

Walking up to his bedroom door, he softly knocked and called, "Dany?"

"Yes?" he heard her muffled reply.

He slowly opened the door as Aunt Cat sighed in relief behind him. The room was dim, lit only by his small desk lamp, but he could see that Dany was sitting on his bed, quite distraught. Turning his head, he saw that Aunt Cat had also seen that Dany was crying. Quietly but firmly, he told her, "Go ahead and start dinner. We’ll be there when we get there, okay?"

Aunt Cat nodded, "I’ll tell everyone Dany’s not feeling well."

"That’ll work," Jon replied, shutting the door behind him as he entered the room. He sat down beside Dany and gingerly began stroking her back, "Want to tell me what’s wrong?"

"I just feel horrible… I’m a liar," Dany said before she began sobbing.

Jon pulled her against him, "Why do you let this bother you so much?"

"I love your family. They are all amazing… and I’m lying to them!"

"Well, I love my family too… but sometimes you can help someone by protecting them from the truth. They like the lie better than they’d like the truth."

"I wish that could make me feel better."

"Me too," Jon smiled, kissing the top of her head, "Then my shirt wouldn’t be so wet."

Dany laughed, despite the tears still streaming down her face. Pulling back so she could look up at him, she said, "It’s just that when I see their faces, looking at me like I’m this… girl that you love and married and made a baby with… but I’m not. I hate the way that makes me feel."

Jon swallowed, not sure what to say. A part of him wanted to tell her that it wasn’t far from the truth. He did love her and marry her… and he could love her baby just as much as if he had helped make it. But he knew he couldn’t… it would only cause problems. He’d learned that the hard way after they had made love.

"You know that there’s nothing I can say to set you straight on that. They do look at you that way, because we’ve told them this story… and it is just a story… but I don’t think that’s reason enough to beat yourself up. I mean, look at me, this is my family. My flesh and blood and I am lying to them… does it look like I’m losing sleep?"

Dany smiled and shook her head, "I wish I could not care."

"Don’t care! You shouldn’t! It would make me exceedingly happy if you didn’t."

"I just… I like how they like me… embrace me and welcome me into the family. I keep thinking about after… they’ll hate me."

"No, actually… in all seriousness, they think you’re a really sweet girl. If we get divorced, they’ll probably think I screwed up."

"That doesn’t bug you?"

Jon shook his head, "You see, you’re a mother now. Mother’s have this bizarre obsession with worrying about the distant future when absolutely nothing can be done. I enjoy the now."

Dany smiled, "I guess you think I’m being pretty silly."

"Yeah… but in a cute way."

"And the rest of your family will now think I am a flake because I am making you miss your grandmother’s dinner."

"Dany, there is, like, a billion people downstairs… I bet we’re not even missed… and my aunt told anyone who did notice our absence that you’re sick. Would you like to go wash your face and then the both of us could go down for dinner?"

Dany nodded and smiled shyly, "I’m really hungry."

Jon grinned, "Okay, we’ll go then… just take it easy. I hate seeing you cry. Please, for my sake, don’t do it again?"

"I’ll try… but I am the hormonal nightmare, so I won’t make any promises," she joked as she got off the bed and walked to the bathroom to wash her face, feeling much better than before Jon had come into the room. He was so good to her… maybe everyone wasn’t wrong about them after all….

The next few days passed uneventfully. After seeing Dany crying, Aunt Cat had backed off, knowing it was more important to keep Dany light on the stress than to get her to see she belonged with Jon. She did have several more months to do that, anyway, even if it was easier to do so when she wasn’t all the way in Dragonstone. Dany and Jon spent a lot more time together, just hanging out with Jon’s family, for the remainder of their trip in Winterfell.

All too soon it was Saturday morning and Dany and Jon were telling everyone goodbye. Much to Jon’s chagrin, Aunt Cat started crying, which made Dany cry, and everyone passing by in the busy airport stare. Luckily, the flight began boarding and Ned suggested they go ahead and get on, since it would be hard for Dany to do so in her condition after the seats were filled.

At long last, Jon tugged Dany through the doors so they could trudge down the walkway to the plane. Fortunately, she stopped crying right away and was instead quiet for the most part as they got situated. In fact, she didn’t say a word all through take-off and the flight attendant’s demonstration.

Reaching across the armrest, Jon found Dany’s hand and gave it a gentle squeeze, "Are you okay?"

Dany nodded, "Yeah… sorry… I’m just really going to miss your aunt. I know it was only a week, but I love her… and the rest of your family. It was great being around all of them."

"They are pretty great… but better in small amounts than large sums. Like… cheesecake. You love it and want a lot… but it’s rich so if you have a lot… you get sick."

"I wouldn’t get sick of your family."

"Yes you would. You just think you wouldn’t because you’ve never had too much of them."

Dany smiled at him, "Even if you are right, I wish my daughter could have a big loving family. I’m not going to be able to give her any family at all. Just me."

"Well, I think she’s extremely lucky to have ‘just you’. I know for a fact that you’ll be a great mom."

"You really believe that? I want to, more than anything… but I’m kind of scared. She’s not even born yet, and I’ve screwed stuff up."

"No you haven’t. You were dealt a crappy hand. Drogo made the choice not to be around, your uncle made the choice not to want you to stay with him… you didn’t just say you were going to raise the baby by yourself and move out of your uncle’s place because you wanted to. Look at what you have done. You’ve gotten yourself a job… you did something you didn’t want to do so that you would have health insurance and a home for her… you’re doing fabulous."

Dany gave him a full fledged grin, "I don’t know what I’d do without you."

Jon returned the smile, even as his heart ached. He didn’t want to think what he’d do without her….


	45. Of fathers

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Jorah is quite the father figure innit?

Jorah was surprised to hear a knock on his front door early on Sunday morning, but hurried to answer it. When he saw Dany on the other side of the threshold, he was instantly worried.

"Dany, are you alright?"

Dany smiled at him, "I’m fine. Are you alright?"

"Yes," he replied, flustered in a way that only Dany could make him, "Why are you here?"

"Uh, do you think I could come in? I’d rather talk to you and not all your neighbors."

"Oh, yes, right," Jorah said, stepping aside so she could enter the apartment.

Dany walked over to the couch and sat down, not without some effort. Being seven months pregnant made any movement difficult.

"Would you like anything to drink?" Jorah asked as he followed her into the room.

Dany shook her head and patted the spot next to her, "I have something important I want to tell you."

Not without trepidation, Jorah sat beside her, "What is it?"

"I have made a lot of mistakes in my life, done a lot of stupid things… and made a lot of decisions I know you didn’t agree with. Like the baby… I know that you would have preferred I have an abortion or give the baby up for adoption… because there’s a lot of reasons why it would be better for me not to be a mother. But it’s what I wanted, and even though it wasn’t your choice… you backed me up," Dany told him, tears shimmering in her eyes, "You always do that. You support me no matter how you feel. I just want you to know that I know you do this and it means a lot to me. I am telling you this now because today is Father’s Day. And I know I do have a father… but he died, but, really, when I think of the man who has loved me as a daughter and done all the things a father should do, been all the things a father should be… I think of you."

Jorah was moved beyond speech and just smiled adoringly at the girl who wished more than anything was his daughter. But in that moment, he saw that even though they didn’t share blood, they shared what mattered. He had a daughter.

"Thank you for telling me all this," Jorah finally said.

Dany shook her head and grinned as she wiped tears from her cheeks, "Thank you for giving me so much to be grateful for."

"To be fair, everything I do for you seems natural."

"I have another purpose for my visit. It’s Father’s Day and, to me, you’re my father, so I want to spend the day with you. I got together with Tyrion and he agreed to run the shop today. So… are you willing to be my date?"

Jorah grinned, "I’d love to."

"Will you tell me where we’re going now?" Jorah asked for the fifth time since they had left the apartment.

Dany had tugged him out the door and into her car, insisting that their destination be a surprise. Jorah had reluctantly allowed her to drive them out of town and on a road through the hills that he believed were by the beach.

Dany sighed, " Fine, if you must know now. I thought a lot about what we could do today, because I really wanted it to be special. Like, I thought it would be cool if we could do something together that you really liked… but I don’t think I know nearly enough about Jorah the adult… mostly you’re Jorah the older brother/dad-like guy. I know you like martial arts, but I can’t do unless it’s finger flexes or something, and you enjoy cross referencing, which I could do, but that’s damn boring… and you enjoy books, but I don’t think it would be fun to read together… so I couldn’t think of anything! So, I packed a lunch and decided to take you to a spot I really like on the beach for a picnic. Then you can tell me something special that you’d like for us to do this afternoon."

Jorah was touched that she really had put a lot of thought into this. However, he had no idea what they could do either. He tried coming up with ideas until Dany pulled into a small, deserted parking lot.

"Nobody ever comes here… besides me, anyway. I found it one day when I was driving around, just after you gave me the car. I come once a week or so… just to think. It’s like my special spot," Dany explained, giving him a hopeful smile.

"It’s beautiful," Jorah told her, looking through the windshield at the long stretch of sand and ocean in front of them, "I’m amazed that it’s not packed with people."

Dany shrugged, "For some reason, they direct everyone that other beach. It’s got all the vendors, major parking… and the bathrooms, which I admit are helpful… but I love the privacy."

"Yes, I will much prefer enjoying a picnic all alone with you than with hundreds of loud, half-naked people surrounding us."

Dany laughed and opened her car door, "Let’s go eat, I’m starving."

"So, do you know what you want to do yet?" Dany asked as she began cleaning up the trash from their picnic.

"How about I sit here for the next three days and digest?" Jorah smiled, "In case you were wondering, your culinary skills are still improving… and I hadn’t thought it could possibly get better after the last time you cooked for me."

Dany grinned, "Thank you… but this was nothing."

"Well, since it’s not very often someone makes me a picnic lunch, it was a lot to me."

Dany paused for a moment and looked out at the water, "Nothing sounds better than jumping in the ocean right now. Hey, maybe I’ll come back out here with one of my old bikinis. They’ll fit… I won’t look very attractive, but this place is deserted."

"You really don’t think you look attractive?" Jorah asked, then continued when Dany gestured to her stomach and shook her head, "Well, I can tell you from my fatherly perspective that you are the most beautiful girl in the world. You’re just as attractive now as you were a year ago. I think you would be surprised how many men see a pregnant woman as something very attractive. I would hazard to guess that Jon agrees. What do you think?"

Dany chuckled and shook her head, "Have you been talking to Jon’s aunt? Because that was really such an Aunt Cat maneuver."

"Just making an observation," he defended himself, all the while grinning like the cat that ate the canary, "I think I know what I want to do now."

"Oh, what?"

"I would like to fly a kite."

Dany raised her eyebrow, "Seriously?"

"Yes… when I was a boy, my mother used to take me to the park every Sunday afternoon and we would fly my kite. I quite enjoyed it… and I think it would be quite nice if I could fly a kite with you. What do you say?"

"Sounds cool to me," she said, "Um… but will this be the ‘running around’ kind of flying a kite, or the ‘standing still’ kind? Because as the pregnant, uncoordinated, having-a-hard-time-even-walking-too-much one… I much prefer standing."

"Thank you, Dany. I had a wonderful day," Jorah said as he dried the last dish. After he and Dany had found a store that sold kites, they’d gone back up to her special spot on the beach and flown their kites for a while, then gone back to his place where Dany had cooked him a big dinner with plenty of leftovers so she knew he’d have good food to eat for a few days.

Dany grinned and hugged him, "Thank you for all the years you’ve been a father to me when you really didn’t have to."

"I told you, it’s easy," Jorah replied, then took a step back, "Now as much as I love spending time with you, you’d best be heading home. It’s going to be dark soon."

Dany rolled her eyes and started walking to the door, "You sound just like Jon."

"Good, then I know Jon cares about you too," he smiled.

"Oh, I can’t believe I almost forgot!" she exclaimed and pulled a card out of her purse, "I got this for you."

Shyly, she handed him the card and kissed him on the cheek before rushing out the door, as if she feared his reaction. Dumbfounded, Jorah stared at the envelope in his hand as she left.


	46. Of work parties

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay. A lot of real life happening.

"Hey, how’d it go?" Jon asked, coming out of his bedroom as he heard Dany enter the apartment.

She grinned broadly at him, "Really great, I think. Jorah seemed to have fun."

"He did… uh, he called me a few minutes ago because he wanted me to make sure you let him know you get home safe. We talked for a bit and he really enjoyed it."

"Oh good," she said as she clapped her hands together, "You know, I was very nervous about today."

"Yeah, I had that idea from the way you’ve been obsessing about it," he teased.

Dany stuck her tongue out at him and reached for the phone, "Well, I’ll call him back now so he doesn’t worry. He’s just like you in that way… big worrier."

"Okay," Jon said and sat down on the couch.

She frowned, "Was there something you needed?"

"Well, I, uh, sort of have a favor to ask you… but it can wait until you’re done."

"No, that’s okay, ask me now."

"Okay…. You see, there’s this big party next Saturday. A ton of colonels and even generals will be there. So of course I have to go but then today I ran into Colonel Davos and he sort of told me I should bring my wife… which would be you… so I’d really appreciate it if you could come. I mean, if you don’t want to, I can probably say you aren’t feeling well, but I’m nervous they might get suspicious or something because nobody ever sees my wife. Besides the guys, anyway."

"Chill, Jon… I’d be happy to come."

"Really?"

"Sure," she nodded, "So is this, like, black tie or something? Because if it is, I need a new dress so I’ll have to go shopping tomorrow."

"Yeah… I’ll pay for it."

"Don’t worry about it, I really don’t mind going to a party for you after all you’ve done for me… besides, you really only need me to do you this favor because you’re doing a much huger favor for me," Dany smiled.

Jon stood and grasped her shoulders, "Thank you!"

"God, I can’t believe I’m here," Dany sighed as she and Jon walked into the room that their first birthing class was to be held in.

Jon smiled, "Trust me when I say I relate."

"I’m sorry I got you dragged into this. Now you’re probably going to get stuck with me when I go into labor because I plan on being a huge baby about it and I’ll probably beg you to be there with me."

"To be honest, I can’t imagine not wanting to be there when you give birth," Jon replied honestly.

"Hello everyone," a woman said loudly as she walked into the room. Smiling, she continued, "My name is Melisandre. I’ll be your instructor for this course. Looking around the room, everyone appears to be in the right spot, but just in case, you should all be here for the birth class. If not, I suggest you make a run for it now, before I put on the birth video."

As several people laughed, Jon turned to Dany, his face suddenly very pale, "Birth video?"

"That’s part of it," she replied.

"Everyone, let’s all make a circle here on the floor. Coaches, I’d like it if you were all human pillows for our expectant mothers, it will be our most popular position in this class."

They moved to the center of the room and Jon helped Dany get down on the floor before sitting behind her and resting his legs on either side of her. Dany awkwardly copied all the other couples and leaned back against him until she couldn’t resist how nice it felt and relaxed.

Melisandre quickly told them all the techniques they’d be working on throughout the course before popping the aforementioned video in the DVD and dimming the lights. Jon took a deep breath and tried to prepare himself. After the one time with Talisa when he’d even made a point to not look in certain places…. he wasn’t sure he could make it.

*

"Okay, just remember. We just stick with the truth for the most part. If anyone asks how we met, we give them the truth. Well, about our first date, anyway. The only thing we lie about is that we got married because you’re pregnant and the baby’s not mine and that we aren’t really living as man and wife," Jon reminded Dany as he pulled into the large round driveway in front of General Arthur Dayne’s mansion.

"Yeah, I haven’t forgotten. You did tell me ten times already," Dany replied, irritable after spending the past two hours in Jon’s truck as they drove to Stonedance and Jon stressed about being caught. Like they’d been able to trick his family and friends and everyone who knew them, but a few military men that they’d never even met before would see right through the charade. Glancing at the window at the house as Jon pulled up, Dany was very impressed, "Wow, are you going to be able to get a place like this someday?"

Flattered that Dany thought he could make it to General, Jon shook his head and grinned, "I doubt it. General’s get paid well, but not that well. General Dayne’s wife inherited a lot of money, I hear."  
"Ah, I see… well then you definitely have to divorce me. I can’t bring you a fortune… just babies," Dany joked as a valet opened the door and helped her out. She quickly tugged at her simple black sleeveless v-neck dress that fell to her knees with a ruffle around the hem, hoping it wasn’t too wrinkled after their long drive.

Jon walked around the truck after another valet had opened his door and gotten in to park the vehicle. Offering Dany his arm, the two of them walked up the path to the front door, "Now, keep in mind that these are Generals. They're very manly and... not personable. Don't be offended if they don’t really have a conversation with you… it’s just how they are."

"I’ll just be happy if they don’t order my execution," Dany replied lightly.

Once they reached the door, Jon took a deep breath and knocked. A few seconds later an older man in a tux, opened the door. Dany was even more awestruck by the home as they entered the foyer. This was definitely the nicest party she had ever been to. For the first time that evening, she felt a bit of anxiousness. She absolutely could not mess things up for Jon. Even if they didn’t discover their secret… having a dipstick wife wouldn’t help Jon’s career at all.

After someone had taken her purse for her, she and Jon stood in a receiving line and waited to shake hands with the General and his wife. It took a few moments, but Dany finally found herself shaking the hand of a woman with perfectly coiffed auburn hair and a warm smile.

"Dany, this is Dyanna Dayne. Mrs. Dayne, this is my wife, Daenerys Targaryen-Snow."

"It’s so nice to meet you, Ma’am, you have a beautiful home."

"Oh thank you, dear. I’m so glad you could make it. I understand you two are from Dragonstone… I know all too well how uncomfortable a two hour drive is when you’re pregnant. When are you due?"

"August 19th," Dany replied, "Less than two more months. I have to remind myself every five minutes or so."

Mrs. Dayne laughed, "Yes, I remember that feeling as well. However, there comes a time where you wish you could keep them inside you forever."

"Forgive me if I am skeptical about that at the moment," Dany smiled.

"Well, I should be a good hostess and meet everyone, but we’ll have to discuss this later, all right?"

"Absolutely," she nodded and looked at the man standing next to Dyanna. He was large, but still… not incredibly scary.

"Sir, this is my wife, Daenerys. Dany, this is General Arthur Dayne."

"Pleased to meet you, Sir," Dany nodded, reaching out to shake the man’s hand.

The General gave it a firm shake, "It’s nice meeting you too, Mrs. Snow. I always enjoy seeing my men settle down and start families of their own."

"Well, that we have," Dany smiled, putting her hand on her belly.

"It’s good to see, very encouraging," the man nodded.

Dany smiled awkwardly at Jon, hoping he’d spirit her away. He hadn’t been kidding when he said the General probably wouldn’t be personable.

Luckily, Jon must have read her mind, "Well, we’ll let you move on. Hopefully we’ll get to talk soon, Sir."

"Yes, absolutely," General Dayne agreed before turning to the next person in line.

"Well, that was interesting. He’s big on family values," Dany commented as they walked into a large ballroom with people milling about, most of which were in uniform, as was Jon. In fact, she was a part of the minority, since most of the guests were from the Night's Watch project… and unmarried.

"I know," Jon agreed, "Let’s hope he forgets me, because if I ever meet him again and have to tell him I’m divorced, I’ll lose all my brownie points and then some."

Dany frowned, but didn’t comment. In the three weeks since their return from Winterfell, she’d remained open minded about their relationship, but Jon appeared to have lost all interest. He wasn’t mean, or any less sweet… he just seemed… content to divorce her.

"Dany! You look beautiful, as usual. I really love the new ‘do," Tormund grinned as he approached them and leaned down to kiss Dany on the cheek, "Are you ready to leave your husband for me yet?"

She laughed and smacked him playfully on the arm, "You’re such a shameless flirt."

"I can’t help it, you bring it out in me," Tormund defended himself, then looked at Jon, "How’d it go with the General?"

Jon shrugged, "Fine… I think he was really impressed that I have a wife."

Tormund rolled his eyes, "This guy is such a brown-noser. He probably only married you to impress people."

Dany put a hand to her chest, "Poor me, I’m just being used!"

As she and Tormund laughed and Jon tried to look disapproving, Dany felt a lot better. Sure, they were out to impress the important people… but ‘her guys’ were there… so she might as well have fun.

"Like that?"

Dany looked away from the sword hanging on the wall and was surprised to find General Dayne a few feet away from her. Smiling, she nodded, "It’s beautiful… from the First Dornish War era?"

Clearly impressed, the man replied, "Why yes, it is. It’s a Valyrian’s Sword… issued to both sides of the war."

"I was looking at another one in the hallway near the restroom earlier… that was from the same era too, right?"

"Yes, that is actually a replica, but it’s still a beauty."

"I agree," she smiled, "So you collect First Darnish swords, or just swords in general?"

"Oh, I’m a big fan of swords, and I’ll buy them from any time if I like them, but I do prefer the ones from the that," the General replied, "I have most of my collection in the library. Would you like to go look?"

"Sure," Dany said, taking his proffered arm and letting him lead her out of the ballroom.

"Hey, have you seen Dany?" Jon asked Edd as he found his friend standing off to the side by himself. He’d started looking for his wife a few moments earlier and discovered she was nowhere to be found.

Edd nodded, "She’s looking at the General’s sword."

"Huh?" Jon asked, not missing his friend’s double entendre.

Edd sighed and explained how he had overheard Dany’s conversation with General Dayne and how the two had left for his library ten minutes earlier.

Jon had to admit, he was amused, even as he feared Dany might slip and say something to get them in trouble, "Who would have thought Dany would have something in common with the General?"

"Hey, how come you didn’t tell me Dany’s like a fencing master?" Sam asked as he walked up to them, "I just saw she and General Brandon come in here and he was asking her if she’d like to try fencing with him after she had the baby!"

"You’re kidding," Jon exclaimed, turning to see that Dany was indeed walking over to the table with food alongside General Dayne.

"I hear he never lets anyone near his precious swords! He must really like her," Pyp told him.

The three of them stood in silence for several moments, watching as Dany let the General help her fill a plate with food and head over to a table nearby…. within earshot.

"I’ll have to have my wife talk to you later. She used Lamaze with all four of our children and swears by it."

"That would be great. We’ve only had one class and I have a lot of questions," Dany replied, munching on a little mini quiche.

"I’m sure Dyanne will be more than happy to help you out," he assured her.

"You know what was so funny," Dany laughed, "They showed this video of this woman giving birth and I thought Jon was going to pass out for real! I don’t know how he’s going to make it through an actual birth!"

Jon felt his face turn beet red as all the growing number of friends around him began cracking up. This is what he’d been afraid of.

The General laughed and nodded, "Honey, in that case, you’d better keep an eye on him in the delivery room because when Dyanne gave birth to our first, I actually did faint!"

All the guys stopped laughing. Stunned, Tormund said, "He actually admitted that to her… God… he’s really digging her!"

Over the next hour, Jon stood in the same spot with Edd and Samwell and watched as Dany had first General Dayne, then General Hightower and Colonel Davos enthralled in conversation.

"Didn’t I tell you she was bad news?" Edd commented, shaking his head. Only Dany could turn a military engagement into a giggling vapidity fest.

"Actually, they all seem to really like her," Samwell pointed out, "I wouldn’t worry… if anything, they’ll like you more because of her."

"Until he divorces her," Edd smirked, determined to hate the agreement Jon and Dany made until the day he died.

"Then maybe I just won’t divorce her," Jon retorted.

"Maybe your husband would be interested in doing some volunteer work. That always looks good when it comes time for promotions. I can help get him into one of my charities… perhaps he could help out with Toys For Tots," General Hightower offered.

Dany’s eyes widened, "You work on Toys For Tots?"

The man nodded proudly, "Yes Ma’am, every year."

"Oh, I saw on youtube once, you know how they have that one commercial for it, where the soldier is all standing straight like he’s supposed to, and then this cute little boy comes up to him and asks if he’s Santa Claus because he has a list for him, and the soldier knows he’s not supposed to talk or anything, but then his hand opens so the little boy can give him the list? I love that commercial! It’s so sweet… makes me cry every time!"

The men around Dany all chuckled and Colonel Davos replied, "Actually, that makes me a little misty eyed as well."

"Excuse me," Jon said as he walked up next to Dany and slid his arm around her, "I hope I’m not interrupting… I just wanted to make sure Dany wasn’t hungry."

Dany sighed and smiled, "Everyone keeps coming up and asking me that!"

"Well you need it," General Dayne said, "You’re no bigger than a minute!"

Colonel Davos nodded in agreement, "You’re a tiny little thing."

"It’s good to see you make sure your wife is taken care of," General Hightower told Jon, then glanced at his watch, "Speaking of, my wife is going to kill me. I had no idea how late it was… I was so entertained by you, Mrs. Snow. It was a pleasure meeting you… we’ll have to do it again."

Dany grinned and nodded, "Definitely."

"It is late… this party will be breaking up soon, so I’d better get to my hosting duties," General Dayne told her, taking her hand and kissing it, "Don’t forget our fencing date. Shall I plan on taking you on in October? That should give you some time after you have the baby."

"Sounds good to me," Dany told him.

"I’d better get a move on too, it’s a long drive home," Colonel Davos said, "Dany, I want you to come to my wife’s next dinner party. You two will be getting an invitation for sure… can I expect to see you?"

Dany gave Jon a questioning look and he quickly nodded, "We’d love to, Sir."

Once they were left alone, Dany smiled up at him, "I think I did okay."

"Okay? You were amazing… a huge hit! I’m very, very proud of you."

Dany smiled even wider as Jon hugged her as tightly as he could with her distended stomach. His arms felt so good around her…. if only she could spend the rest of her life that way.


	47. Of surprising visits

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had a lovely time writing this chap. So fluffy!

"Are you sure he meant tonight?" Dany asked again as she and Jon walked through the courtyard towards Jorah’ apartment.

Jon nodded, "I told you, not only am I sure he said he really wanted us to come over tonight for dinner, but he also said ‘see you in half an hour’, so I’m positive he meant tonight."

"It’s weird, he never mentioned anything about it… Jorah isn’t a last minute kind of guy," Dany sighed, "I hope he doesn’t have some horrible news to tell me or something."

"Don’t get yourself all worried," he told her, "We’ll find out in just a minute, I’m sure."

"Or maybe not," she said, as she saw through the window that the apartment was dark, "Maybe he’s not back from wherever he ran off to when he called."

"Something is going on, I can smell it."

"You can smell it? What the hell is that?"

"Instinct, Dany… instinct."

Dany rolled her eyes, "Whatever… should I even bother knocking on the door. Maybe Jorah is in there… are you sure he invited you too? He could be planning a romantic candlelit dinner or something."

It was Jon’s turn to roll his eyes as he knocked on the door and Dany giggled.

"Come in," Jorah called from inside.

Jon opened the door and Dany stepped in the dark apartment, "You really should know better, Jorah. You weren’t sure it was us."

"Surprise!"

Both Dany and Jon jumped as the lights came on and they saw Jorah, Grey, Missandei, Tyrion, Aunt Cat and Sansa standing in the living room, big grins on their faces.

Dany put a hand to her chest as she tried to comprehend what was going on. Looking to Jon, she knew right away that he hadn’t been in on it.

"Aunt, what are you doing here?" he asked.

Aunt Cat came over and hugged a still shocked Dany and then her nephew, "Jorah was so kind to invite your sisters and I to Dany’s baby shower. But Arya couldn’t make it because of the finals"

"My baby shower?" Dany asked.

"Actually, it was all Catelyn’s idea," Jorah smiled as he walked up to Dany and giving her a gentle hug, "She called me several weeks ago and helped me organize everything. As you can imagine, I didn’t know much of anything about baby showers."

"You guys are giving me a baby shower? Really?"

"When you told me you didn’t think you were having one, it broke my heart. There’s no way we could let that happen," Sansa told her.

"And how come nobody let me in on the plan?" Jon asked.

"That’s because we wanted to keep it a secret," Aunt Cat told him, "Even if you hadn’t let it slip, you probably would have raised Dany’s suspicions."

Offended, Jon replied, "I can keep a secret! I work for the U.S. Military… we’re all about secrets!"

"Yeah and instincts… don’t forget you can smell when something’s up," Grey snorted.

Jon glared around sternly as everyone laughed. Jorah soon ushered them to the table that was set with pink paper plates and pink plastic cups. As Jorah, Missandei and Sansa headed into the kitchen to bring dinner out, Dany and Jon took a moment to look around. Pink was definitely the theme of the party, apparently since the baby was a girl. There were pink balloons tied all over the apartment, as well as a few "It’s a girl!" ones. On the coffee table, there was a large white basket filled with white and pink baby shirts, booties, socks and a teddy bear. There were even white and pink streamers hanging from the ceiling and on the staircase. Obviously, they’d put a lot of work into this.

"Lasagna?" Jon exclaimed as Jorah carried the large pan of food out, flanked by Missandei and Sansa with garlic bread and a big salad.

"Yes, Dany loved it, so I had to make it for her party," Aunt Cat replied, affectionately stroking the back of her hand over Dany’s cheek.

"This is so wonderful, I can’t believe you all did this for me," Dany smiled.

"Well, we love you, Dany," Missandei told her.

"Actually, they do, I just like you," Tyrion added, "I only love wine."

Sansa gave him a strange look before saying, "Let’s eat before Jon drowns us in his saliva. Dany, I thought you could cook?"

"She can… she’s a great cook," Jon assured his sister as he forced himself to be polite and give Dany a heaping serving of lasagna.

"Then Mom ought to teach her how to make lasagna, since you’re so crazy about that."

"Oh, I’d love to learn if you want to show me," Dany said.

"Absolutely," Aunt Cat smiled, "I have to teach you how to make my boy’s favorite meal!"

Grey chuckled as he took a bite of garlic bread until he caught a glance of Jon’s murderous glare.

After everyone had eaten to fullness, they moved to the living room. Upon everyone including Tyrion’s insistence, Jon and Dany sat on the couch while everyone else cleaned up the mess, as they were the guests of honor, even though Jon really wasn’t the expectant father. Sadly, he realized that the baby probably wouldn’t even know him. How would she remember someone who was only in the first five months of her life?

Once everything was cleaned up, everyone else gathered in the living room as well as it was announced that it was time for presents.

"Me first, me first!" Tyrion exclaimed, carrying a big, brightly wrapped present to Dany, then frowned, "You have no lap! Where am I supposed to put this?"

"Uh… how about my lap?" Jon offered.

Satisfied, Tyrion set the gift in Jon’s lap and plopped down in front of them to wait for Dany to open the gift. Dany reached awkwardly over and started ripping the wrapping paper off to reveal a cloud bouncer seat.

She gasped and smiled, "Oh, this is so great! Thank you!"

Tyrion another, smaller present, "I have another for you, but this one isn’t nearly as exciting," Tyrion sighed as he passed the box to Dany.

This one contained a pink embroidered denim jumper, "This is adorable!", and walked over to her to give him a tight hug, "I picked it out myself."

"Well, you did a wonderful job, thank you so much," Dany grinned, hugging Tyrion.

An hour later, the living room was littered with paper. Dany was surrounded by all her gifts. Missandei and Grey had given her a snugli carrier and a ton of clothes…. Missandei had gone overboard at Carters’, apparently. Jorah had proudly presented her with a carseat that would work for an infant and toddler that he had carefully selected after a lot of research. He’d also gotten her an activity center that he’d made sure had no parts that would injure the baby, telling her that his ‘granddaughter’ would always be safe if he could help it. Arya and Sansa gave Dany a couple more outfits, as well as a monitor and a Cloud diaper bag.

"Now it’s time for your last present," Aunt Cat announced from behind the phone camera.

"There’s more?" Dany asked tiredly.

After she’d handed the camera to Sansa, Aunt Cat nodded and retreated down the hall, only to return pushing a bassinet in front of her. A bassinet that was packed full of goodies.

Dany’s eyes widened and Aunt Cat stopped the bassinet in front of her, "Oh my God!"

"These are all little necessities. I know your apartment isn’t that big, but you’ll find it is nice to have somewhere to put the baby when she is sleeping other than her crib. I’ve got all the bedding for it, but I will buy you something else if you don’t like it. Also, I bought you this little grooming kit with a little brush and comb and nail clippers. It was so adorable! And there’s diapers and bodysuits and undershirts and socks… and a couple more pairs of those sneakers you liked."

"It’s too much! You really shouldn’t have done all this!" Dany said, tears welling in her eyes yet again. She’d been like a leaky faucet all night long.

"It’s nothing, Sweetling. You know how I love to shop… I had a blast getting all of this for you," Aunt Cat assured her, then retrieved a large book, "I also got this for you. It’s a baby book. You can put your sonogram pictures in there, plus fill out all the information when our little darling comes into the world."

"It’s beautiful… thank you so much," Dany said, squeezing Aunt Cat as the older woman bent down to hug her. "I’m so lucky to have so many great people in my life. You all are so good to me."

"Not any more than you deserve, believe me," Aunt Cat replied, smiling down at her daughter-in-law, then smiling a bit wider when she saw the way her nephew was looking at Dany. If only they would get their acts together!

"Good thing I brought my truck," Jon muttered as he fit the last of Dany’s presents in the backseat and climbed in the driver’s side, "As it is, Grey has to bring Aunt Cat and Sansa over. God, I hope Tyrion keeps his mouth shut."

"As it is, Sansa thinks he’s a big weirdo," Dany laughed.

"Man, I could kill Missandei… I got you the cloud mobile months ago and she knows that… but she didn’t let me in on the secret so I was the only one not giving you a gift. I’ll give it to you when we get home… maybe I can get you the stroller, too, since all the secret-keeping-traitors couldn’t! Just let me know when the store gets the one you want back in stock."

"You don’t have to do that… and it’s so nice of you to buy the mobile," Dany grinned, leaning over to kiss him on the cheek without thinking, "Thank you."

"You’re welcome," he blushed, "And I want to get you the stroller."

"No."

"Yes."

"No!"

"Yes!"

"Nooooooo!"

"Yes!" Jon replied, wondering how long this would go on. She drove him absolutely crazy…. in a good way.

"So how are we going to sleep?" Sansa asked.

"I know!" Aunt Cat exclaimed, "Dany has that daybed, so you and I can use that and the trundle, and Jon and Dany can share his bed!"

"No, aunt, you’re not pulling that again. You and Sansa can share my bed, Dany will sleep in her own bed, and I will sleep on the couch."

"How about you sleep on the trundle in Dany’s room?" she asked optimistically.

"Couch."

Aunt Cat sighed in defeat as Sansa got up off the couch, "Well, with the time difference, I am exhausted, so I’m going to get ready for bed."

"Yeah. I’d better get to bed soon" Dany said, struggling her way out of the chair, "Thank you again for the wonderful presents… and for coming. I love having you around."

"Oh, I love spending time with you, Sweetie. I’ll see you tomorrow," Aunt Cat replied, kissing Dany on the cheek.

"Goodnight," she said, "Night Jon."

"Goodnight," he called after her, then turned to his aunt after Dany had gone into her bathroom and shut the door, "I can’t believe you came out here for a baby shower! And you really went above and beyond with that gift! I mean, Dany deserves the best… I just cannot believe you did all this!"

Aunt Cat smiled, "I know… I did more than I would normally do… but I really do adore Dany… and I feel so bad for her. You don’t understand, Jon… she needs a mother right now, more than anything. Pregnancy is a very hard, confusing thing. I know I’m a phone call away and that helps her… but she still could use some motherly affection for important events like this. I know it’s not realistic, but I wish I could be around when she has the baby too. She’ll want someone to look over her shoulder and assure her she’s doing everything right when she brings the baby home."

"Aunt Cat… I love you."

"I love you too," she smiled at her nephew, "Now I’d better get moving so you can get some rest. Are you coming shopping with us tomorrow?"

Jon pretended to think for about five seconds, "I’ll pass."

"I bet you can’t wait to wear something like this again, huh?" Sansa asked, holding up a little red strappy dress.

Dany nodded fervently, "Boy, would I ever!"

"Just a couple more months, Dear. I know you’re getting antsy, but be patient," Aunt Cat advised.

"God, I’m beginning to doubt I will ever fit into anything like that again," Dany sighed, "I’m so huge."

"Oh, you will… " Sansa replied, "Were you in good shape before you got pregnant?"

"Yeah, great shape. I even kept up jogging until my fifth month… but it got hot out and I got bigger… so now I waddle for exercise."

Sansa laughed and continued looking through the racks, "God, I love it here. Mom, I think I’m moving here."

"Oh no you’re not," Aunt Cat replied, "I already have to deal with one of my girls being all the way over here, not you too."

Dany smiled, flattered that Aunt Cat considered her one of ‘her girls’, and started browsing through some dresses just for the heck of it. She wouldn’t be pregnant forever, after all. And as God as her witness, she would lose the baby fat and get her body back! Maybe she could even do it in, like, three months, so she’d have two months of thinness to change Jon’s mind about the divorce. No wonder he’d shown no romantic interest in her when she looked like a blimp!

"Excuse me."

Dany looked up to find a middle aged woman smiling at her, "Yes?"

"I just… had to ask… have you found a couple yet?"

"A couple?" Dany asked, thoroughly confused.

"To place your baby with," the woman explained, "I’m just asking because I know a couple that would love to adopt."

"Adopt," Dany repeated, shocked by what this woman was saying.

"Yes… I think they’d definitely be interested in adopting your baby.. if you’re giving the baby up, that is."

"She’s not!" Aunt Cat burst out, rushing towards them, "She and my nephew love their child and are keeping her!"

"Well, I didn’t know," the woman said defensively, "She’s so young."

"Not too young to be very happily married!" Aunt Cat retorted, holding up Dany’s left hand so that the woman could see her wedding ring. With one final dirty look at the woman, she slid her arm around Dany’s shoulders and pulled her away, "Come on, Sansa."

Sansa obediently followed, shaking her head, "I can’t believe that lady had the nerve to say that."

Dany was finally recovering and quietly told them, "People say stuff all the time. Granted, normally they usually express their disapproval, not assume I’m putting the baby up for adoption, but I still get reactions."

"This is ridiculous, I know you’re young, but nineteen isn’t that unusual to have a baby," Aunt Cat said angrily.

"Well, Dany does look very young. They probably just assume she’s sixteen or something."

"That’s no excuse, Sansa! Even if Dany was sixteen, it’s no business of theirs!"

"I know, I didn’t say I agreed with it… I just said why I thought they did it," Sansa sighed.

"What do you usually say to these people?"

Dany shrugged, "Nothing… I know I can’t get myself all worked up so I mostly try to ignore them and walk away."

"Defend yourself, Honey! If you walk away, they think you’re ashamed and they feel like they are right. Set them straight. You’re married to a wonderful man and you’re going to be a great mother!"

"Well, to be fair, Jon’s not really..."

"Jon is legally your husband, so you can say it. Don’t you want to make them eat their words? Hmm?"

Slowly, Dany nodded, "It would be nice."

"Then do it!" Aunt Cat said, grabbing Dany by the shoulders and looking her in the eye, "Promise me that if anyone ever says anything to you again, you don’t just walk away, you show them that they are ignorant and ought to worry about themselves, not you!"

"I promise," Dany acquiesced, a small smile on her face.


	48. Of encounters

"Oh, God, of course it would have to be on the bottom shelf," Dany muttered as she grappled to kneel down in the aisle of the Barnes & Noble, which was not an easy task in her eighth month of pregnancy. However, Missandei’s birthday was the following Tuesday and she really wanted some book on languages around the world… that was on the bottom shelf.

Once she’d gotten down, Dany found the book pretty easily, but then came the matter of getting back up… which was a lot harder to manage. After several minutes of struggling, Dany was back on her feet. Using the book to fan herself, she made a mental note to never get knocked up so that she’d be enormous in August. With the heat, she was always sweaty, tired and all around uncomfortable.

Waddling down the aisle, Dany headed towards the registers and got in one of several long lines. She would have thought more people would be working at noon on a Friday, but apparently they were all at the bookstore. Glancing at the people in the other lines, Dany met the eyes of one of the last people she expected to see.

Aemon Targaryen.

The two only stared at each other for an instant before looking away. Dany felt like her heart was beating a mile a minute. This was a nightmare…. She’d always had hopes deep down that they would someday reconcile their differences, but she certainly didn’t want her uncle to see her like this.

Dany tried to keep her breathing even and prayed her line would move quickly when a woman who had been checking out some magazines on display next to her looked up and clucked her tongue.

Shaking her head, the woman quietly said, "Ought to be ashamed."

Dany felt the familiar stiffening of her body that always occurred when someone made a rude comment about her pregnancy. However, this time, Aunt Cat’s words from nearly two weeks earlier echoed in her mind. She’d made a promise and she planned to stick by it.

"Excuse me?"

"How old are you?"

"Nineteen, how old are you?" Dany asked the woman in her most innocent voice.

The woman gave her a disgusted look at Dany’s lack of shame that she was a mere teenager having a child, "You’re a disgrace!"

"Excuse me?" Dany asked again, aware that they were getting a lot of attention.

"Pregnant and still a teenager yourself!"

"Yeah, and? What business of it is yours, anyway?"

"Well, I’m a taxpayer, and I’m sure you’ll end up on welfare, so it’s very much my business!"

"Actually, I have a job, and my husband," she added, holding up her left hand to show her the wedding band, as Aunt Cat had done, "is in the Westeros Military! So I wouldn’t worry about paying for me or my child, because I can do it just fine on my own!"

"It’s probably not even real," the woman defended weakly.

"Oh yes, she’s going to go around wearing a fake wedding ring to lie to perfect strangers," Aemon stepped in, shocking Dany, "Trust me, my niece has better things to do… unlike some people who attack strangers who they don’t know anything about!"

"This is your niece… well no wonder she got like how she is!"

"Thank you, what a compliment. I thought I did a great job raising her too!"

The woman, obviously speechless, quickly turned on her heel and stormed off. Dany was quiet for a moment before she looked up and her uncle and smiled.

"Thanks for the help."

Aemon waved his hand and smiled, "You were doing absolutely fine on your own…. I just got so infuriated… I couldn’t stand by and not say anything."

"Well, it was nice having the support," she told him.

Aemon nodded and looked down, "You’ve probably needed a lot of support since last December… and I haven’t given you any."

"I made my own choices," Dany shrugged.

"Still… I regret some of my choices," Aemon admitted, "I don’t suppose you’d like to go to Starbucks… I know you can’t drink coffee, but I could buy you something else."

"That would be really nice, actually," Dany smiled more widely, "I just have to pay for this book."

Luckily, the lines had cleared out so both of them were able to quickly pay for their books before heading to the attached Starbucks. They got their drinks and sat down as an uncomfortable silence settled between them.

At long last, Aemon sighed and shifted in her seat, "I’m so sorry for the things I said to you."

"Don’t be… you only said them because you love me and wanted what was best for me," Dany replied, "I know that now. I don’t regret for a second that I didn’t have an abortion, but I do wish I had been a little more calm and given you a chance to get accustomed to the idea. I was just confused and scared and angry…"

"No, I was wrong. I mean, I can’t really say anything about the abortion. Seeing you now… seeing that this baby is really a baby, not a tiny little thing inside you… it’s too hard to say if you should have had an abortion," Aemon told her, "I was just… very very angry, at you… at Drogo… at myself. I did want the best for you, Daenerys, but I fault myself for letting my anger get the best of me. There were a thousand times I wanted to try and find you and apologize, but I was too much of a coward… and I fault myself for that too."

Dany tried not to cry, but was failing miserably, "Can we put all that behind us? I mean… we both made mistakes and have regrets… but I would really like it if you could be a part of my life again. I… I need you, uncle Aemon."

Aemon had a hard time not crying as well, "I would love that too. I miss you so much, Daenerys."

"I miss you too… there’s so many times I’ve wanted to call you."

"Well, I’m here now…pretty late, I know."

"Better late than never," Dany grinned.

"So… are you really married?"

"Yes… but it’s sorta weird," she replied, then explained to her uncle the entire story with Jon, minus a few details like the night they made love and how she hoped they wouldn’t get divorced.

"Wow," Aemon said as she absorbed Dany’s tale.

"Yeah," Dany replied, smiling self-consciously, "I know you don’t like the whole thing about lying to the military and the preplanned divorce… but it really was the best option."

"Gods, I hate myself for making that your only option!"

"Don’t… believe me, it’s not as bad as it sounds. Jon is… like, the best guy in the world. I mean, look at what he did for me! Took a lot of sacrifices, and he’s risking it all."

"He does sound like quite a boy," Aemon smiled.

"Oh, he is! I mean, not only does he do this… but he’s always being really sweet to me. He taught me to drive! I have a car, thanks to Jorah, and Jon’s always making sure that the tires have enough air and the engine’s in good shape… he even agreed to be my Lamaze coach. We had our last class last night, and he went to every single one, even though the birth videos really make him squeamish."

"Gods, you’re going to be needing it soon, aren’t you?"

"Less than a month now… August 19th. I’m actually getting really nervous," she admitted.

"You’ll be fine, I know it."

"I hope so… and as much as I am nervous… I’m twice as excited. I can’t wait until I get to see her for the first time."

"Her?"

Dany nodded and rubbed her stomach, "It’s a girl."

Aemon grinned, "That’s so wonderful! I can’t wait to buy her clothes. You have to let me spoil my great-granddaughter."

"She’s already spoiled by everyone else, so why not?" Dany replied, "I really wish you could meet Jon’s mother, Aunt Cat. She loves the baby like she’s Jon’s daughter… bought me a bassinet and a ton of stuff."

"I can’t even buy a bassinet," Aemon sighed sadly, then perked up, "But do you need anything else? Crib? Carseat?"

"I have them both," Dany bit her lip, "I bought all the furniture myself… and my friends gave me almost everything else I will need at my baby shower."

"Almost?" she asked hopefully.

"Well, they wanted to buy me this stroller I picked out, but it wasn’t in stock. Jon’s taking me to the store soon to see if they have it, though…. I’m so huge I can’t carry stuff like that any more," Dany smiled.

"I can buy it! Oh please, let me buy it, Daenerys! Alleviate my guilt?"

"I’ll think about it," Dany said, shocked that she wasn’t jumping at the chance to let her uncle buy something for her. Well, there was a first time for everything.

Aemon reached across the table and gingerly took his niece’s hand in her own, "Also… I would love it if you could come over for dinner tonight. I know it’s a one and a half hour drive to Harrenhal, but we have so much catching up to do."

Dany nodded, "That sounds great to me."

"Do you think you could bring Jon? I have to meet him!"

"Well, he’s off work, so I’ll ask. I think as long as he doesn’t have plans, he’ll agree."

"Wonderful!" Aemon grinned, "Sweetling, I am going to make this up to you if it’s the last thing I do."

Dany just beamed at him, feeling happier than she had in months. All she needed now was to have Jon as her husband… for real… for good.

"Dany, calm down," Jon smiled as they stood on the front porch of the home she’d shared with her uncle for several years, "Everything will be fine."

"I know, I’m just… I really want this to work out," Dany replied, straightening her jumper one more time as they waited for Aemon to open the door.

Jon nodded, knowing nothing he could say would comfort her right then. He’d been so happy to hear that she’d run into her uncle that afternoon. He had to love the fact that Aemon had made it clear she really wanted him to join them…. It wouldn’t hurt his case if he could win Dany’s uncle over.

The front door opened and they found Aemon grinning at them, "You’re here!"

"Hi uncle," Dany said, almost shyly, before he pulled her into a tight hug.

"You look so beautiful! I’m so glad you’re here. I ordered roasted chicken and potatoes and asparagus… your favorite. It’s still your favorite, right?"

Dany nodded and then gestured to Jon, "Uncle, this is Jon Snow… my husband. God, it feels kind of weird saying that."

Jon exchanged smiles with her before taking a step forward to shake Aemon’s hand, only to have him hug him tightly as well, "Uh… it’s nice meeting you."

"Oh, I have so much to thank you for! You gave my niece a home when I was such a fool that I let her go off all alone in the cold night while she was pregnant," Aemon lamented, "She told me how you’re so good to her. I am so grateful!"

"Well, to be fair, Dany inspires generosity from everyone she meets. She’s even had some of the scariest Generals I have ever met eating out of the palm of her hand."

"Really?" Aemon asked, putting her arm around her, "That’s my girl."

"Oh yeah, this is for you," Jon said, handing Aemon the chocolate cake Dany had baked that afternoon and he’d insisted on holding when she’d been shaking so much after they got out of the car, "Dany baked it herself."

"She did?" Aemon asked, surprised as she took the cake from him.

Jon nodded and grinned at Dany, "She is a great cook, everyone agrees."

"My goodness, you have changed so much in the past eight months… not only are you even more responsible and really a mother... you can cook," Aemon said, then shook his head, "Look at me, I have you two standing outside! Come on in! We have so much to talk about!"


	49. Of run ins

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just want to voice something that's been bothering me for quite some time. Some of you reviewers are viciously mean. If any of you click on the link, it's because you wanted, nobody has forced you to read anything. I've received a couple of outrageous reviews that frankly, I'm embarrassed for these people, and I've read many of those around this fandom. It's not only disrespectful; it's down round pathetic that these people seem to get off by criticizing someone else's work. It's not that hard to just click on the close button and move on with your life without leaving a path of hatred.
> 
> You don’t like the story or its development, then don’t read anymore. The creative process is something unique and if you feel like you’d do better than any of the writers, then, write your own damn story.

"God, no more riding in the truck," Dany groaned as Jon helped her into her seat, "I am eight months pregnant!"

"All right," he chuckled, shutting her door after he had her settled and walking around to his side, an extra bounce in his step. Dinner couldn’t have gone better. Aemon was not only very enthusiastic about making things up to Dany, but he was actually very excited about his great granddaughter. What's more, he seemed to really like him, telling him to take good care of his niece, then smiling and adding that he could tell that wasn’t a problem. He was pretty sure he had an ally in Aemon… and after seeing the way Dany acted around him, knew he could be a strong influence on her.

"You should try and call my aunt tomorrow, maybe after you get off work," Jon told her as he started the car, "She is going to be really happy to hear about this… and if you don’t let her in on the details as soon as possible, she’ll kill you. Trust me, if anything newsworthy happens and you don’t tell her right away, it’s a big deal to her. It’s amazing she didn’t stop speaking to me when I got married and didn’t tell her for days afterwards."

"You think she’ll want to know?"

"Absolutely! She thinks it’s very important for you to have someone from your family around , especially with the baby coming…. I think she wishes she could be closer to you… but I know she’ll be ecstatic not that she won’t mother you any less."

Dany smiled, "I don’t mind."

They settled into a comfortable silence for several moments, but Jon could see the wheels turning in Dany’s head. She was getting fidgety and he suspected she might want to ask him something but was trying to work up the nerve or decide how to say it. He was getting to the point where he was going to ask her what was up when she finally spoke up herself.

"Jon… I was watching this thing on TV… about divorce and its effect on children. They said that even babies notice, and I was just thinking… it makes sense and it’s not like the baby will be a few days old when we get divorced… she’ll be about five months… she’s going to be able to tell something is happening. What if it becomes a part of her subconscious that you were there for five months and then all of a sudden you disappeared and has a fear of abandonment?"

"Well… I’m your friend, Dany… and I am not planning on never seeing you again come January 3rd. I mean… I’d like to still hang out sometimes, we can do stuff, just like you do with Grey and Missandei… so maybe she’ll see me less after we get divorced… we can make it a gradual thing," Jon suggested, suppressing the urge to tell her if she worried about this, perhaps they ought to just stay married and he wouldn’t have to leave.

Dany nodded and looked down, "She’s probably going to have issues, anyway. Who am I kidding? I still have no idea what I’m going to say when she asks me why she doesn’t have a daddy."

"You have some time to come up with an answer," he told her, patting her leg affectionately.

"Yeah," she replied, disappointed. This was honestly something she had worried about… but she’d half-hoped Jon would have had a different answer… one that showed he hadn’t changed his mind about loving her. But obviously he had moved on from that…

They were, without a doubt, divorcing in just over five months.

"You’re sure this isn’t too much?" Grey asked as he and Dany walked through the mall, "I don’t want you going into labor on me."

Dany smiled and shook her head, "I can manage to go to a few stores to find a necklace for Missandei. This is easy, trust me. My uncle got me to promise to go shopping with him Saturday morning so he can buy the stroller and anything else he can think of that I might need and don’t have."

Grey saw right through her complaint and smiled, "You love it."

Dany grinned, "I do."

"So… how are things with Jon?"

"Fine," she replied, "Why do you ask?"

He shrugged, trying to be casual, "It’s just that I… well I don’t want to be an obnoxious meddling friend, but I see things, and I want the very best for you… so maybe I’m kind of hoping you and Jon decided that you were in love with each other and stayed married, raised this kid together, and lived happily ever after."

Dany didn’t get defensive or angry, rather a surprise to him, but simply sighed, "If only it was as easy as that."

"Yeah, emotions tend to get messy."

"I’ll say."

"But you do… care for him… don’t you?" Grey asked.

Dany thought for a moment before opting to just be honest. After all, Grey was her friend, not Jon’s. He wouldn’t go blab the truth. Nodding, she admitted, "I think I love him. You know, not like how I love you."

"Drogo kind of love?" he responded, surprised she was being so upright.

"It’s so hard to say. Like, what I have with Drogo is in a different category. I love Drogo and I love Jon, but I can never have a life with Drogo… so never the two shall meet. But, yeah… I love Jon in the way that I want to wake up next to him every day, have his arms around me when I’m upset… share all the good and bad stuff with."

"For what it’s worth, I approve."

"I thought you were suspicious that he was only helping me to get in my pants and use me and the baby as lab rats?" she grinned.

"He grew on me, okay?" he retorted, "Seeing the way he’s treated you for the past seven months has proved to me that he’s worthy. If you want to be with him… I say you should!"

"Okay! I’ll just go tell Jon that I’ve decided to forget all about this silly divorce plan. He can spend the rest of his life as my husband, raising my daughter as if she’s his own. I’m sure he’ll have no problem with that. Free will be damned," Dany replied teasingly.

Grey rolled his eyes, "I didn’t say it was that cut and dry. Of course Jon has to be of like mind… but from what I have seen, I wouldn’t be surprised if he was."

"What have you seen?"

"Well… I still have a hard time buying the fact that he’d marry a girl he hadn’t known that long just because they were friends. I’m not saying he was planning to take advantage of you or whatever…. I just think maybe he did it because he really cared about you. Plus, I see how he is around you. You can’t tell me you’ve never noticed that look he gives you."

"Yes I can. I mean… it’s been mentioned to me before that Jon may give me certain looks that allude to feelings he may have for me… but the source was a little biased…." Dany said, then shyly asked, "What kind of look do you see him giving me?"

"Honestly? The look Drogo used to give you. As much as I hated the guy, with 20/20 hindsight, I can admit he loved you," he told her.

Dany was quiet for a while before she said, "I want to believe Jon does love me and that we can have it all… but we can’t. Stuff happened and he told me he loved me."

"He did?" Grey exclaimed. 

She nodded, "It was a while ago… but I didn’t believe him. Jon’s so… good. He always wants to do the right thing, so I had a hard time believing he really did love me and wasn’t just too into being my savior. I was afraid that if I accepted he loved me and told him I loved him too… after the novelty of being the husband and father that we needed wore off, he’d see that it wasn’t real love and break not only my heart, but my daughter’s."

"But what if he really does love you?"

Dany shrugged and tried not to cry, "I think I’ve given up on love. It hurts way too much. I’d rather just spend my life single and focusing on my daughter than trying to have it all with Jon… and running the risk of letting him hurt me."

"Yeah, because it’s not like you’re in any pain now, right?" Grey pointed out.

Dany looked up at him and pouted, "I hate that you’ve gotten so smart."

Laughing, he asked, "Want me to have a man to man talk with him? I can tell him that he’s lucky enough to have won the fair Lady Dany’s heart and he’d better get his act together and start whispering sweet nothings in your ear, or something. Oh, and I can tell him that if he hurts you, I’ll kick his ass."

"You’d better not!" Dany grinned, "It will totally embarrass me! Besides… I think I lost him."

"How so?"

"Well, he used to kind of look a little sad when someone mentioned the divorce, like it was something he dreaded. Now I can bring it up and he doesn’t even flinch. He’s not counting down the days to his freedom… but he doesn’t care."

"I think you’re wrong," Grey commented, walking into the jewelry store.

Dany shrugged, "It’s my life."

He shook his head, knowing if he kept pushing, she’d probably just get mad. Maybe he’d have to do a little talking to Jon behind Dany’s back. It was for her own good, after all.

"Okay, so this is the one I had in mind," Grey said, focusing on the task at hand as he pointed out a gold heart-shaped locket with an intricate design carved into the cover, "I know there’s nothing really special about it… I just think it’s pretty. I thought I could get some pictures of the two of us and put them inside."

"Oh, Grey, it’s very special! It’s so beautiful! Missandei will love it," Dany assured him.

"You swear?" he asked.

"Great, I really wanted to get this for her. I mean, it’s not her birthday or our anniversary or anything… but I saw it and thought of her and I really want to… show her that I think of her."

Dany grinned and squeezed his arm, "That makes it all the sweeter that you buy her presents when it’s not required. I like ‘just because’ presents the best!"

"Can I help you? Oh… my God… Grey… and Dany," Doreah exclaimed from behind the glass counter, her eyes widening as she took in Dany’s figure… 

"Doreah, what a surprise to see you working here," Dany said, plastering a fake smile on her face for the girl who hadn’t exactly made her life easy in high school.

"Yeah, I thought you were going to Essos," Grey commented.

Doreah shrugged, "I went, but nobody spoke the common tongue and it totally bugged me!"

"Oh, that… sucks," Dany told her.

"Wow, I can’t believe the two of you came in here! You’re… together?"

"No! No, no, no," Grey shook his head fervently and pointed at Dany’s stomach, "That’s not… mine. I have a girlfriend… Missandei. Besides, Dany’s married! Show her your ring!"

Dany smiled at Grey’s panic and held up her hand, "I’m married… not to Grey."

"Oh, okay…" Doreah replied, still in shock that Daenerys Targaryen was not only pregnant, but married! She couldn’t wait to call Jiqhi!

Drogo sat down in front of the computer and set to signing into the joint account he had set up with the bank. He hadn’t had much of a chance to check up on Dany’s finances, but he knew she couldn’t have gone through all that money already. Still, she would probably be giving birth in less than three weeks, so he wanted to make sure she had at least a few thousand dragons left. She’d surely run up an enormous medical bill for that alone, so he’d probably have to contact Malakho about doing some more jobs for him soon. If Drogo had any say in it, Dany and the baby would never want for anything… anything material, anyway.

He frowned when he saw that the account balance was a bit more than what it had been the last time he had made a deposit. Looking at the records, he found that other than his deposits, the only other activity had been some interest payments by the bank. Dany had yet to withdraw a penny.

Confused, he picked up the phone and dialed Jorah’ number, hoping that he would be home. He knew the doctor bills Dany would have to be paying were exorbitant, plus she had a crib and stroller and clothes and thousands of dragons of other items she’d have to be buying for the baby. So why hadn’t she withdrawn any money from the account?

He sighed when it went to the voice mail, he said, "Jorah, it’s me… I need to talk to you. Did you really tell Dany about the checking account? She hasn’t used any of the money! Please, I want you to call me. We have to talk!"

Jorah walked into his dark apartment, his empty stomach demanding dinner. It was after nine o’clock, and he hadn’t eaten since noon, since Tyrion had worked all morning and Dany’d had the day off, he’d had to close the store himself.

Still, it was nice being tired and hungry because he’d worked a long day at his thriving business. Much better than being exhausted after working for low pay for someone else.

Finally having time to chack on his voice mail, Jorah hit the play button and headed to the kitchen to find something to cook. His good mood was instantly killed when he heard Drogo’s voice, asking why Dany hadn’t used the money. The succeeding three messages were also from him as Drogo went from baffled to demanding to know what was going on. The last message was from Dany as she laughed and told him she’d wrestled some of the casserole she had made for dinner away from Jon and had left it in the refrigerator for him. Sure enough, there was a tupperware in there for him.

Jorah sadly looked at the plastic dish, contemplating his options. How was he going to be able to explain the fact that Dany didn’t need the money without telling Drogo about Jon? He knew that if he did tell him, Drogo wouldn’t be happy… and Dany seemed so content, if Drogo showed up, everything would fall apart. Again.

With a sigh, Jorah put the tupperware in the microwave, deciding he could call Drogo later.


	50. Of uncovered truths

"Qhoto, you will not believe this," Jiqhi announced as she rushed into his apartment, quickly glancing around and happily finding Drogo not in sight, "Good thing Drogo’s not here because I will explode if I don’t spill the news now!"

"Actually," Qhoto began, trying to alert her to the fact that Drogo was indeed there… he was just inside the kitchen… where he could easily hear anything Jiqhi might say.

"Doreah called me this morning," she continued, "She was working yesterday and guess who came in? Dany and Grey! That’s not the really big news, though, because who cares if Dany and Grey go to a store together? Well… it can be a big deal if you hear the rest of this. Dany is pregnant! Not only that… she’s married!"

Qhoto almost fell out of his chair at that last bit of news, "Married?"

"Yeah… I don’t know which is a bigger shocker, the married or pregnant part… either way, this is the last thing I would have expected to hear! Doreah is pretty sure Grey’s not the husband or father, since they told her he wasn’t, but what do you think? Probably not, right? Anyway… I don’t think we should tell Drogo."

"Too late," Drogo replied, stepping out of the kitchen.

Jiqhi shot Qhoto a look, "Why didn’t you tell me?"

"You didn’t give me a chance," Qhoto replied, "Drogo, are you all right?"

"I can’t believe this… Jorah never said a word to me. Are you sure she’s married?"

Jiqhi nodded slowly, "Yeah, they told Doreah… she even saw a wedding ring on Dany’s finger."

Drogo shook his head and stormed off to his bedroom. He had a phone call to make.

"How come he doesn’t seem phased that Dany is pregnant?"

Drogo searched through his desk drawer before finding the slip of paper he was looking for and grabbed the phone. Jorah had yet to call him back about Dany not spending the money he’d given her, but he still hadn’t called him at the store, deciding it wasn’t important enough to risk getting Dany on the phone. However, after the four calls he had placed the day before and the two calls he'd made that morning, Drogo knew Jorah was avoiding him and he wouldn’t call his cell phone anymore… and he had to talk to Jorah about this right away, so he was willing to take the chance that Dany would answer the phone.

"Thank you for calling The Dragon’s Egg, your one-stop spot to shop for all your occult needs! How can I help you?" Tyrion asked as he picked up the phone.

"Yes, is Jorah Mormont in?"

"Just a second."

"Hello, this is Jorah," Jorah greeted as he picked up the private phone in his office.

"Jorah…" Drogo growled.

Jorah rubbed his eyes, "Drogo, I got your messages. I’m sorry that I didn’t call you back, but I was tired and, to be honest, I didn’t feel like getting into this with you. Now it’s really not the time or place for me to talk to you, but believe me, Dany and the baby are f-"

"Dany’s married! When were you going to tell me?"

"W-what?" Jorah sputtered.

"Yeah, I found out what you’ve been keeping from me! How long, Jorah? How long have you been keeping the fact that Daenerys is married from me?"

Jorah sighed, "Since you started calling me."

"What? That was… January! She married someone else less than a month after she told me she was pregnant?!"

"Drogo, you do not understand all the details. Now listen, I will call you later tonight when I get home from the store, I promise."

"That’s not good enough, Jorah," Drogo replied angrily, "I can’t believe this… you have to talk to me. It’s not just a matter of Dany marrying some guy, he’s going to be the father to my baby!"

"If you have forgotten, you told Dany that you would only give her money. You wouldn’t be involved in their lives at all, so I don’t see how you have any say in the matter," Jorah reminded him, growing angry as well.

"If it’s just a matter of me not having any say in the matter, then why did you keep it a secret?"

"Because I knew you would react like this, and the last thing Dany needs is for you to come barging into her life, dictating to her what she can and cannot do."

"Well, if there is nothing wrong with this marriage, why would I?"

Jorah sighed, "Believe me, it’s a very long story."

"Well, lucky for me, I have all day," Drogo told him, sitting down on the edge of the bed.

"All right then, here is the entire true story. As you know, Dany went to you and told you she was having your child and you told her that you wouldn’t be a part of her life, just give her money. She came home and told us- her friends. I am ashamed to say that we didn’t react well. We weren’t supportive of her decision to keep the baby, but Dany remained strong despite that. Then she went and told her uncle… Aemon ended up throwing her out of the house on a cold December night."

"Oh Gods," Drogo said softly.

"Yes, Dany was a pregnant eighteen year old that everyone she loved turned their back on. Then she ran into a fellow that she knew from school, Jon Snow. This boy who hardly knew her… took her in. He let her stay with him, knowing she was pregnant. Everyone besides Aemon made up with Dany fairly soon after, but she was still faced with the reality that she was having a baby and had no money or job. So Jon came up with the idea to get married. He’s in the military and as his wife, Dany would have a home, financial support and a college education."

"So she married a guy she doesn’t even love?"

"Which would bother you more, Drogo- that she married a man she didn’t love or a man that she did?"

Drogo was silent for a moment before he replied, "I can’t believe this is happening. What is with this guy? You know as well as I do that men don’t just marry girls to help them out!"

"Jon is a good man. He honestly cares about Dany. I had my doubts in the beginning, but I have gotten to know him over the past six months and I can say without a moment’s hesitation that he isn’t out to do anything besides help Dany," Jorah told him, opting not to add that he was pretty sure Jon loved her, "They have an arrangement and are planning on divorcing next January, after a year of marriage."

"This is insane."

"No, it’s the only choice Daenerys had!"

"I’m not proud of not being there for Dany and our baby, okay? But I didn’t have a lot of choices either!"

"What exactly do you want, Drogo?"

"I… I don’t know."

"Well, you need to decide. Preferably before the 19th."

"I know that you’re angry with me… I’m not too pleased with myself… but you have to believe that I love Dany."

Jorah nodded, "I know you love her and she will always love you. I haven’t always agreed with the decisions either of you have made, but I respected that. I was never pleased about you two being a couple… I don’t think that’s news to you. However, you did make Dany happy. Are you prepared to make her happy again? Because, you know, this isn’t just about you. In fact, it’s not just about you and Dany. It’s gotten a lot more complicated than that. Now there is a little girl… completely innocent in all of this. She’s just a little baby."

"A little… girl," Drogo repeated, "It’s a girl?"

"Yes, she is a girl. I don’t know what your intentions are, Drogo, but keep in mind that Dany is doing very well. She’ll always love you and a part of her will always wish that the two of you could raise your daughter together, but Dany also knows you can’t give her that. Now, what she has right now… she’s content. She’s looking forward to the birth of her baby, she has a job and school and friends. But if you come back here and push your way back into her life… everything is going to change. Dany can’t just deal with you lightly," Jorah said, "Think about that. Right now… she’s happy… if you can’t give her that, you shouldn’t begrudge her-"

"I would never-"

"Then I suggest you think long and hard before you make your next move because you have punished that girl more than anyone deserves to be punished," he advised.

Drogo sighed and was silent for a moment before he finally came to a decision, "Would you give me her phone number?"

"Drogo, I won’t let you do this to her!"

"Jorah, this is my daughter we are talking about. Even if you don’t want to take into account that I love Dany more than anything… it is my flesh and blood that is affected by this."

"Affected positively," Jorah added, "Without Jon, your daughter would have had a homeless mother. Because of him your daughter will be healthy because her mother got good prenatal care thanks to Jon’s health insurance. Dany went and married Jon because she was carrying your daughter."

"Don’t tell me how wonderful this Jon is, I don’t need to hear how I have already failed my daughter before she’s even born!"

"I told you, this isn’t about you!" Jorah shouted, "Can you understand that?"

"I know that, and if I tried to say that I wasn’t feeling jealous and threatened right now, I’d be lying. But I have to talk to Dany. I have to make sure that this is the best thing," Drogo argued.

"I don’t believe it’s in Dany’s best interest that you call her," Jorah answered, "Look, I will talk to Dany and tell her that you know about Jon and that you wish to discuss this with her and let her call you."

"No," Drogo shook his head, "That’s not good enough. I can’t trust that you will do it… look how long it took you tell her about the damn money! And even if you do tell her, knowing Dany, she’ll ignore me, just to spite me."

Jorah’ hand curled into a fist and he had to fight to control his anger, "Well, that’s my offer."

"Give me her phone number, Jorah. Give it to me, or as soon as I can, I am coming to Dragonstone. You know I will find her… what’s worse, a phone call from me, or a face to face meeting with me?"

Jorah’s eyes narrowed as he knew Drogo had him right where he wanted him, "You’re a bastard. Dany and the baby deserve better."

"I love them… I’ll do anything for them."

"Yes, even put their well-being behind your own selfish wishes."

"I care about them… you may think this is just about me, but I have to know for my own sanity."

Jorah shook his head; Drogo couldn’t even see his own faulty reasoning. Sighing, he said, "You want the phone number? Fine… but if you hurt Dany… if you make her shed so much as one tear… I’ll kill you."


	51. Of phonecalls

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Drama ensues

Dany finished the last chocolate mini-donut and chugged some milk straight from the carton, grateful that Jon was at a meeting for work and wasn’t there to tease her. The doctor had told her that the baby could be born at any time now and would be perfectly healthy… a part of her really wanted to go into labor. She loved her daughter more than anything, but she was completely tired of being pregnant. The swollen ankles, the excessive peeing, always being uncomfortable… it was getting to her. Plus, she was so tired because she could never get comfortable enough in bed at night to sleep much.

Deciding it would be a good idea if she took a shower before noon, Dany went to get up off the couch, but was stopped by the phone ringing. Sighing, she grabbed the cordless phone,"Hello?"

"Daenerys."

All the blood rushed from Dany’s face, "Drogo?"

"Yeah, it’s me," the man replied quietly, closing his eyes and trying to imagine how she looked, round with his child.

"Why are you calling? How did you get this number?" Dany asked quickly, a million other questions forming in her mind, "After all this time…"

"I found out you got married," Drogo answered, "Jiqhi heard it from a friend… I called Jorah and I made him give me your number. I had to talk to you."

"What for, Drogo? What difference does it make to you that I am married? You left so that I would find a normal guy, when I got pregnant you told me you wouldn’t be here for us… you don’t want to be a part of our lives, so whether or not I am married doesn’t concern you!"

"I know that you didn’t fall in love with this guy, Dany. Jorah told me the truth. Before you even married him, you planned on getting a divorce."

"So what? I’m still not seeing how this involves you."

"I just…. it’s twisted!"

"Well, I’m very familiar with twisted," Dany retorted, "Twisted and I are on a first name basis. This shouldn’t be news to you."

"Dany, please-"

"Please, what? Please don’t be angry at you? Sorry, Drogo, but I just can’t control that right now."

"Do you think there is a day that goes by where I don’t want to smack myself for telling you I won’t be there to help you raise the baby?" he said, "Every day I hate that I am missing out on so much… that I am not there for you when I should be… but then I also remember that I wouldn’t be what’s best for you. Still… when I heard what you had done… Dany, I’m so sorry that you ended up having to get married just to have a home and food and the necessities."

Dany took a deep breath, softening as she heard how truly sorry Drogo was. He always had a way of making her feel guilty when she chewed him out, "It’s really not that bad. Not bad at all, in fact. I mean, I know it’s not normal or as nice as if it was all as it appeared… but he’s a great guy. He’s good to me… goes to the store at all hours of the night when I have a craving, makes sure I take good care of myself… he helped me put the crib together and stuff."

"All the stuff I should be doing," Drogo said sadly.

Dany closed her eyes against the tears forming there, "Yes… all the things you should be doing… and there’s a lot of other things he doesn’t do that you ought to be doing. I… I go to the doctor all by myself and I see all these other women with their husbands and boyfriends. Sometimes I feel like I have a big scarlet ‘A’ on me… and everyone who looks at me can tell that I’m some dumb girl who got knocked up… and dumped. Do you have any idea how many times I get looks from people? I know that’s not your fault that they feel they can pass judgement on me… but I wish I could come home and have you assure me that what they think doesn’t matter," she cried, then calmed a bit, "I know that probably sounds silly… but it’s important to me."

"I’m sorry, Dany.. I wish I could… you do have Jorah and Grey and… this guy," Drogo offered, purposely not speaking the name of the man who he felt immense jealousy towards already.

"Jon… his name is Jon," Dany corrected him.

"Jon…"

Taking a deep breath, she said, "It’s not the same, though, Drogo. You are the father of my baby… and you aren’t here for me."

"Trust me, it’s just as hard for me, being here and knowing you’re having our baby and I’ll never get to see her or anything."

"Excuse me if I am not overwhelmed with pity for you," she lashed out, "God, you have it so easy. You, you can still go anywhere and have all these girls dying to be with you. I know you think this is petty and stupid, but you get pregnant and have your body become not your own and see how you feel. Damn it! I resent you so much."

"And I deserve it."

"Yeah, you do… and knock it off with the martyr crap!"

"Martyr crap, what are you talking about?"

"You act like a martyr all the time. Don’t you recall ‘Oh, let me leave town to make things easier for you. It breaks my heart, but it’s best for you. Let me suffer… I’m really the one in pain, you know? And if you complain, you’re a big spoiled brat because I am the martyr!’?" she ranted.

Drogo was taken aback, wondering if this was one of those pregnancy things. Expectant mothers were notoriously… irrational. Not that Dany was really being all that illogical… just… skipping from subject to subject and going from angry to sad… and he was having a hard time keeping up, "Well, I know it’s late… but I am here now… on the phone, anyway… and I’d like it if you wanted to let it all out now. I know it’s not the same but-"

"No, it definitely isn’t the same," Dany replied, "And it’s extremely late… but I suppose I should take what I can get."

Drogo felt a little hopeful as Dany softened again, "So… you’re feeling okay?"

"No, I’m eight months pregnant, I feel like crap. I’m rarely comfortable, I can’t see my feet, I pee all the time, sitting down and getting up is exhausting… and I can’t sleep because even when I am comfortable, don’t have to pee and I’m not starving… she’s kicking or moving or doing something to keep me up," she complained, then smiled, "But I am eight months pregnant, so it’s all completely normal… and that’s a bit of a comfort."

"It’s a little girl," Drogo grinned.

"Yeah… but you already knew that, right?" she asked, recalling how he’d mentioned it earlier.

"Jorah told me… have you picked a name?"

Dany shrugged, "I am extremely indecisive about names. I usually choose one or two a week. I hope I think of one I like for real when she’s born, though… I’m thinking legally changing her name will be a pain in the butt."

Drogo chuckled, "You’re going to be a great mother."

"I hope to all Gods you’re right," she said, moving her hand over her stomach, "I’m so scared she’ll end up being a stripper or a hooker or even shooting up her school when she’s a teenager and I’ll have to take the blame because I’m a single mom. Actually, as far as anyone will know, I’ll have divorced her ‘father’ when she wasn’t even five months old. They’ll write books about how horrible I am."

"You don’t know that you’ll be a single mother."

Dany laughed, "Right… I can just imagine what your reaction would have been if you’d found out I had married a guy and planned to have him stick around."

"Dany… I love you and despite what you may believe, I love this baby. I want the best for both of you… if there is a man in your lives… he’d better be good to you."

Dany relaxed back against the couch, not being able to help but smile. As angry as she was with Drogo for not being there… it sure was nice to be able to talk to him…

Jon came into the apartment and heard the shower running. Dany had certainly gotten a late start that day, and she’d been awake before he’d left. Still… she didn’t move as quickly as she used to, and everything seemed to tire her out. It had gotten to the point where he tried to do anything he could for her so that she could rest… he felt guilty watching her struggle to do everything.

Walking into the kitchen, Jon threw the empty water bottle he’d finished on the way home in the trash can and noticed the empty mini-donuts box and milk bottle. Smiling, he shook his head and wondered if he ought to buy stock. Dany had a sweet tooth like nobody he’d ever seen.

Moving to the counter, Jon checked the caller ID to see if perhaps he’d gotten any calls while he’d been at the extremely boring meeting. All he found was one call; it was long distance from King’s Landing… so all he had was the city, not a name.

Frowning, he wondered who it might be. He certainly didn’t know anyone in King’s Landing. However, he realized, Dany might.

"Hey, you’re home," Dany said, smiling as she walked out of the bathroom, wearing capri pants and a loose maternity shirt, her hair still wet.

"Yeah, I just got back a few minutes ago," Jon replied, "Are you okay?"

Dany nodded self-consciously, wondering why he seemed so worried, "Why?"

"Well, I saw that a friend called you from King’s Landing?"

"Friend?"

"Yeah… on the caller ID, there’s a call from there. That’s a friend, isn’t it?" he asked, then it dawned on him, "Or possibly it’s Drogo. And judging from the look on your face… I’d say it’s the latter."

"He just wanted-"

"No, it’s none of my business," he halted her, holding up his hand. Regrouping, he shook his head, "Wait, you know what? It is my business. How did he get this number? Is he coming here?"

"I don’t know how he got it," Dany lied, not wanting Jon to get mad at Jorah, "And no… he’s not coming here."

"Do you want him to? Were you even going to tell me?"

"I don’t know," she shrugged, "Why? Nothing has changed. We had a conversation. It’s no big deal."

"That’s a lie! If it wasn’t a big deal, you would have told me."

"I didn’t even get a chance! I was in the shower, I came out, and first thing you do is start interrogating me," she replied defensively, "Why do you even care?"

"Because, in case you’ve forgotten, you’re married to me."

"What are you talking about? You know very well how real this marriage isn’t."

"But if you’re going to make a fool of yourself, falling all over this loser, it affects me. People think you’re my wife and you could make me look like an idiot."

"Don’t worry, I won’t be embarrassing you, Jon," Dany replied angrily, turning and storming into her bedroom.

Sighing, Jon leaned against a wall and put his hand on his chest. This was not happening. Drogo wasn’t supposed to be in the picture ever again!

Just moments earlier, he’d had the small comfort that at least for the next five months, he could be with Dany. Now... he wasn't so sure.


	52. Of misunderstandings

"Hi, how was work?" Dany asked Jon as he came in the front door.

"Fine," he replied gruffly, as he had been ever since their big argument the day before.

"I made some stir-fry with chicken for dinner," she said, "It’ll be all ready in a few minutes."

"I’m not hungry," Jon told her as he walked into his bedroom and shut the door.

Dany frowned and walked over to the door. She really wanted to make things right between them again. Hastily, she lifted a hand and knocked on the door.

"What?" he shouted from inside the room.

"I just… I made it for you, Jon…"

The door opened abruptly, startling her. Jon glowered down at her, "Well, that was presumptuous of you."

She nodded slightly, "I just thought we should have a meal together."

"Maybe I don’t want to eat with you."

"But we need to talk."

"About what? It’s all very simple. You want to be an idiot and talk to a disgusting man that got you pregnant and threw you away like you were a piece of trash. I don’t think he deserves for you to give him the time of day and I’m appalled that you actually want to talk to him, but you are an adult… what can I do?"

Dany felt tears sting her eyes, "Please Jon, you don’t understand."

"Yes, I do," he insisted, "You’re the one who doesn’t understand. I find this entire thing offensive, but as we both know all too well, I am not really your husband. I am not the father of your baby. A year from now, I’m thinking we won’t ever even see or speak to each other… so it doesn’t really matter."

And with that, he shut the door in her face. Dany found she could no longer fight the tears and leaned against the wall as they streamed down her face. What was she going to do?

Aemon smiled and patted his niece’s cheek affectionately, "You feeling okay, Sweetling? I don’t want to wear you out."

"I’m fine," Dany assured her, "But we are getting lunch soon, right?"

He grinned and nodded, "Let’s go to the food court now, what do you feel like?"

"Um… one of everything," Dany joked, "Actually meat sounds really good. I’m thinking Whopper… and maybe fries."

"Shall I double size it?"

"Of course!"

The two of them entered the busy food court and searched around for a moment for a table. Once they found one, Aemon insisted Dany sit down and set all their packages on the table while he went and bought their food. Dany looked in disbelief at all the bags of stuff her uncle had bought for the baby. He was definitely making up for lost time and already spoiling his great-granddaughter.

"Dany!"

Dany looked up and was surprised to see Edd standing next to the table, smiling at her. For the past seven months, she’d gotten the impression that he mostly liked to pretend she didn’t exist. Forcing herself to smile back at him, she replied, "Hi Edd."

"Is Jon here with you?"

Dany shook her head, "No, I’m actually doing some shopping with my uncle."

"Oh, that sucks, I would love to see Jon," a redhair girl who appeared to be a few years older than Dany said from her spot next to Edd.

Edd grinned and explained, "She really likes Jon. Uh, Ygritte, this is Dany. Dany, this is Ygritte Wild… she’s a friend of my girlfriend, Kharsi."

A redhead on the other side of Edd smile and waved, "Hi!"

"Hi… nice meeting you both," Dany replied, trying to casually look around for her uncle, hoping the line at BK wasn’t too long. She needed to be saved!

"Wow, you’re really huge," Ygritte said, taking in Dany’s stomach, "When is your baby due?"

Dany narrowed her eyes and feigned hurt, "Actually I’m not pregnant, I just have a weight problem."

Ygritte gave Edd a confused look as she flushed in embarrassment at her faux pas. Why had he told her this chick was pregnant?

Edd laughed loudly, hoping Dany was getting nice and jealous. His plan would work all the better this way. Turning to Ygritte, he said, "She’s kidding. Dany’s due… boy, really soon now, aren’t you?"

"Two weeks from today, actually," she nodded.

"Here we go," Aemon announced, carrying a full tray to the table, "Maybe if you’re still hungry, I can get you an icecream for dessert. Just like when you were a little girl."

"Wow, you really eat stuff like that? It must have, like, a million calories… then again, I guess you have the best excuse, right?" Ygritte asked, a sugary smile on her face.

"Oh, I’ve always eaten whatever I wanted with no problem. Actually, before I got pregnant, I had a hard time keeping weight on!" Dany replied in the same sweet tone.

Aemon looked over at Edd and the two girls, "Oh, hello. Are you friends of Daenerys?"

"Well, I’m actually Jon’s friend… but of course, any friend of Jon’s is a friend of mine," Edd grinned, "Edd Tolllet. This is Ygritte Wild and Kharsi Craster."

"Nice to meet all of you," Aemon nodded.

"Well, we’ll leave you ladies to have your lunch. See you later, Dany!" Edd called as he started to walk away.

"Yes, I’ll be seeing you really soon… Edd promised to take me to Jon’s apartment," Ygritte grinned.

"Oh, goodie," Dany replied sarcastically, though Ygritte didn’t appear to notice… or if she did, she didn’t care.

When the three of them were gone, Dany noticed her uncle smirking at her from across the table, "What?"

"You don’t seem to like her."

Dany shrugged, "She bugs me."

"Why?"

She tried to think of a really good excuse, but in the end, went with honestly, "Because she totally digs Jon and she’s skinny and not a walking disaster…. like me."

"And that bothers you?" Aemon asked.

Dany nodded slowly, "A whole lot."

"I have my suspicions as to why, but do you want to just come clean?" the older man asked, then continued when she shook her head, "I think you may not just think of Jon as a friend… perhaps you have a crush on him?"

Dany laughed sardonically, "No, I can honestly say I don’t have a crush on Jon."

"But you do have feelings for him?"

Dany closed her eyes, "Unfortunately for me… yes."

"I wouldn’t say that. You could certainly do a lot worse," Aemon commented.

"Uncle, it’s not as easy as that. Feelings need to be mutual, you know?"

"Well, I don’t mean to overstep my bounds here, but I’m not blind and despite the fact that I have only seen Jon a few times, I get the distinct impression that he also has feelings for you."

"He may had, at one time… he said he loved me," she admitted, "But that was a long time ago and things change."

"Do you still love Drogo?"

She nodded slowly, "I guess a part of me always will. He’s a major part of my life, especially considering this one here," Dany patted her belly, smiling. “But with Jon… with Jon, it’s just different. He makes me feel things I never had. Like, I can be loved for who I truly am, regardless of my mistakes or the size of my clothes or my cravings and mood swings”.

"Of course… you feel real love for Jon, not some teen infatuation like it was with Drogo. Love doesn’t just disappear. If Jon loved you, really loved you… he didn’t stop."

"Then I guess he didn’t really love me."

"You’re sure of that?"

"Yes… he used to… seem kind of sad when we mentioned the divorce… like he wanted to stay married. Maybe I imagined it, but that’s the impression I used to get. Now, though, it doesn’t seem to bother him in the least. It’s just like the divorce is no big deal… which is what it’s supposed to be, anyway," Dany said sadly, "Can we please change the subject? This is depressing and my hormones are… insane… and I really don’t feel like crying in the middle of the food court."

"Certainly," Aemon agreed, patting her hand, "What would you like to talk about?"

"How about the fact that you knew I have feelings for Jon? What gave me away?"

"Dany, you’re my darling niece… I can read you like a book. You’ll discover very soon now exactly what I mean."

Dany smiled and moved her hand over her belly, "I can’t wait."


	53. Of complications

"What is all that?" Jon asked as he entered the house after working the day shift and found Dany on the couch in the living room that was littered with bags.

Dany smiled, encouraged by the fact that Jon had actually spoken to her without being asked a question first. And more than one word at that! After the past few days, she’d grown accustomed to mostly ‘yes’ and ‘no’ responses from him.

"Uncle Aemon went a little overboard. We went to buy the stroller and he ended up buying it… along with a swing, an activity center, books, clothes and tons of other stuff."

"Well, clean it up, okay?"

"Don’t worry, I’m just catching my breath," she replied glumly.

Jon simply grunted before scurrying to his bedroom. Dany watched his retreating form mournfully; it was just like after they’d had sex all over again. However, she really hoped she wouldn’t have to be attacked by a man in order to get Jon to speak to her again.

Why couldn’t she just be mad at him? Drogo was the father of her baby and it wasn’t like Jon was still offering to stay married to her. It wasn’t like he was offering her anything at all… she was just trying to take what she could get by talking to Drogo. It would be a different story if he wanted to have a real relationship. Then he had good reason to have a problem with her talking to her ex.

Still, she wasn’t angry. She hated the idea that Jon was so disgusted with her. She loved him, and who wouldn’t mind the person they loved feeling that way about them? As sick as it made her, though, she wasn’t going to stop talking to Drogo… not unless things between she and Jon changed. It had been so nice to be able to get it all out with him… and not have to feel guilty for complaining to someone who was going out of their way to help her with her situation. Drogo was half-responsible for that situation and not suffering nearly as much… he deserved to hear her bitching.

With a sigh, Dany managed to stand up and began lugging the packages to her bedroom. She should have let her uncle carry them in there, but she’d turned him down since didn’t want to feel like a total invalid. It took several trips, but Dany managed to remove them from the living room. She still had to put everything away, but at least Jon didn’t have that to yell at her about.

Waddling into the kitchen, Dany fixed herself a glass of water and started sipping on it when there was a knock at the door. Wondering who it could possibly be, she made her way to the door and found Edd, Ygritte and Kharsi on the other side. They’d changed clothes, obviously planning for a night on the town.

"Hi, is Jon home?" Ygritte asked eagerly.

"Uh, yeah, come on in," she replied, stepping aside, "I’ll go get him."

Even more depressed, Dany left the three of them in the living room and trudged over to Jon’s door and knocking, "Jon, you have guests!"

She turned around and started heading back to the living room, figuring she ought to go ahead and attempt to be a good hostess, no matter how much she didn’t feel like it, but was intercepted by Edd in the hallway. He tugged her in the kitchen and smiled.

"Hey, you don’t mind me bringing Ygritte here, do you? I wanted to talk to you earlier, but I didn’t get a chance," he explained, "She knows the whole story with you and Jon and she actually thinks it’s sexy how he’s helping you out."

"Y-you told her the truth?"

He nodded, "You see, Jon has the major hots for this girl. He’s been driving me nuts lately, talking about how much he wants her."

Dany’s heart ached, "He never even mentioned her to me."

"Well, it’s guy talk, you know? He says stuff to me that he’d never say to you. Trust me, ever since you two got back from Winterfell, Ygritte is all Jon’s been talking about. She had this party while you guys were gone and he’s been promising to make it up to her," Edd replied, "Anyway, I’m going to go ahead and hook the two of them up. I figured the four of us could all go out tonight. I wanted to make sure you’re cool with it, though. I mean, it’s not like you guys are really married."

"You’d have to ask him," she replied.

"You think I didn’t? I mean, he didn’t know we were going to come by right now, but I did promise Jon that I would try to set it all up…. it all happened kind of fast. He told me to ask you… I know it’s, like, no notice, but you’re fine with it, right?"

Dany nodded numbly as she heard Jon come out of the bedroom and was visibly surprised to find Edd and Dany in the kitchen, "What’s up?"

"Man, you are going to love me! I brought you a present!"

Jon gave Dany a questioning look at Edd pulled him into the living room, "Ygritte, you know Jon. Jon, this is Ygritte Wild."

"Hi," Jon said, caught off-guard.

Ygritte gave him a wide smile, "Hey."

Dany stood alone in the kitchen, listening to the casual conversation in the next room as Edd explained to Jon that he’d thought it would be fun for the four of them to have a double date. A moment later, Jon came back to the kitchen, an unsure look on his face.

"They want me to go out with them. I probably should, right? I mean, they expect me to…"

Dany shrugged her shoulders indifferently, "Do what you want."

"Are you mad?" he asked, realizing he was almost wishing she was. If she was mad, that meant she had a problem with him seeing other girls, and if she didn’t like the idea of that… a part of her must want him to be seeing her.

"Why should I be? I told you that you could date. I don’t care."

"You don’t care?" Jon repeated, hurt.

"That’s what I said," she nodded, "I don’t care if you go."

"Fine then, I’ll go."

"Good, have fun!" she replied, forcing herself to smile like her life depended on it.

Jon feigned a smile as well before leaving her alone in the kitchen. A moment later, she heard them exit the apartment, leaving her all alone. Free to show her feelings at last, Dany put her hand over her mouth as the first sob escaped her throat.

She staggered out of the kitchen, her vision blurred by tears, and went into her bedroom. Thankfully, she’d set all the packages on the floor, so she was able to collapse on her side on the bed as she cried for all that she would never have. Drogo… who she loved despite all the hell they had gone through… and now Jon, a more wonderful man than she could ever dream of… who had been willing to spend his life with her… and she had ruined it. It was now official- he was on a date with another girl, one that wasn’t pregnant with someone else’s child, and she was quickly becoming a bad memory.

Jon was miserable. As angry with Dany as he was about Drogo, he would have much preferred spending the evening with her than with Ygritte.

Not that there was anything wrong with Ygritte. Despite the fact that she seemed to go for the ‘fiery red hair’ façade, he could tell she was intelligent. She wasn’t ugly… just plain looking… with a bit too much make-up. And she seemed to absolutely adore him. She hung on his every word and appeared to be willing to do anything to flatter him.

Yet he still would rather be with Dany, who could be eight months pregnant, wear no make-up and sit around in sweats and a baggy shirt, and just be herself… and make him want to gather her in his arms and kiss her until he had to breathe.

He stayed, however, knowing that Edd would kill him if he made up some lame excuse and went home an hour into the date. Besides… as much as he wanted her, he didn’t want to give Dany the satisfaction of seeing he couldn’t have fun with another girl. It was ridiculous- here he was on a date with a girl who was totally into him and completely unhappy because it wasn’t with a different girl… who didn’t even care that he was on a date with someone else.

With a new resolve, he smiled at Ygritte and tried to focus on what she was saying. He just had to let go… have fun. Maybe then he could get Dany out of his head.

The sound of the phone ringing awoke Dany, who realized she must have cried herself to sleep when she saw the glowing numbers on her phone read nine o’clock. Picking up the phone, she groggily said, "Hello."

"Dany, did I wake you?" Drogo asked from the other end.

Taken aback, Dany replied, "Um… yeah… but that’s okay, I didn’t intend to fall asleep in the first place… I have stuff to do."

"Is this a bad time, then?" he queried, hoping it wasn’t. It had taken all his self control to not call her every day since the past Tuesday, but he wanted to give Dany her space… so he’d waited four days.

"No, it’s fine," Dany assured him. It was nice to have someone to talk to. It made her see how much she’d really come to depend on Jon throughout the course of their marriage. Grey and Missandei had each other, Tyrion had a bunch of women… and sometimes she just didn’t feel like hanging out with Jorah and Aemon. Now that Jon had his own private thing going… she could really use Drogo’s company.

"So, how are you feeling? I mean, for a woman who is eight months pregnant."

Dany smiled, "I’m doing okay…. How are you?"

"I’m fine," he answered, "I’ve actually been busy with… business stuff… lately."

"The Fitness Center is doing well, I take it?"

"Yeah..." Drogo told her, hoping she wouldn’t interrogate him about where he got so much money to give her. He really didn’t want to have to divulge the details of the jobs he’d done for Malakho. "So what have you been up to?"

Dany shrugged, "Not much, I hang out at home a lot. There’s still another month before school starts, but I will have to register soon. Other than that… I work a few days a week and snack my way through every other one. Today, uncle Aemon and I went shopping, though. We got the stroller I wanted, plus he talked me into letting him get a bunch of stuff. It’s amazing how he has totally become Excited Grandparent. I’d better watch out or he’ll turn this kid into a terror."

"Is there anything else you need?"

"No, this was the last of it. Now, I can just sit back and wait for the baby to come," she told him, before wrinkling her nose and adding, "Except I haven’t packed the bag I am supposed to take to the hospital yet. I really shouldn’t put that off to the last minute. Maybe I’ll do that tonight."

"That would be a good idea…. just don’t overdo it," Drogo said, "What about school next semester, are you going full time or what?"

Dany shrugged, "I’m not sure. On the one hand, it’s more important than ever that I get my degree… but on the other hand, I wonder if I may hate having to be away from the baby. Then again, maybe I will welcome the break… that sounded horrible, but I have checked out books and stuff and they all say it."

"No, I’m sure any parent, no matter how much they love their child, needs a break from crying and feedings and dirty diapers."

She smiled, reassured, "However, going back full time may not be an option. There’s no child care on campus and every day care center I check out requires the baby to be at least three months old. Besides, I really hate the idea of leaving her at one of those places. I know I have Jorah and my uncle and my friends and they will love to babysit, but this would be a few hours five days a week… which is a lot to ask. At least Jorah has promised I can bring her with me to work, so I don’t have to worry about that."

"You’re going to keep working after she’s born?"

"Absolutely; what choice do I have? Drogo, babies like food and clothes and a roof over their head. Quirky little things, eh?" she joked.

"Daenerys, I will take care of your money, please? From the beginning, I promised you that I would help you out financially and I am sticking by that. Trust me, I can make enough to pay for an apartment, food, clothes… everything for the both of you."

"No… I don’t want to do that."

"Why not? It’ll make things so much easier for you."

"I like my job, Drogo. I feel like I help Jorah, and I’m good at it… and I like the fact that I earn a paycheck."

"So, you won’t take any of the money I put in the account for you?" he asked, then sighed and explained, "I saw that you haven’t used a penny of it."

Dany ran her hand through her hair, "I don’t know."

"Please, Dany, I know that there are a lot of other things you wish I would do… but this is the only thing I feel that I can. I love this baby, I do… I want to take care of her too."

"Can we not do this right now?"

"Sure," he said quickly, knowing he shouldn’t upset her in her condition.

"I promise to think about it, okay?"

"Thank you," Drogo said, "So, you had a doctor’s appointment yesterday, right?"

"Yup, everything is great. Heart, lungs, brain… all fully formed and functional. The doctor assured me that whenever she decides to arrive, I will have myself a perfectly healthy baby girl… very possibly weighing eight pounds- damn you for being so big."

Drogo laughed aloud, "Sorry, but you shouldn’t be so tiny."

Dany smiled and rubbed her stomach. It was so great to be like this with him, enjoying the baby as opposed to fighting about it. She shouldn’t be so upset about Jon… she had Drogo, after all. He was the father of her child and he did love her. This was the way things were supposed to be.

"Did Edd tell you how impressed I am by how you’re helping out that girl?" Ygritte asked, smiling at Jon from across the small table at the bar.

Edd had ignored Jon’s pointed looks and left the two of them alone while he and Kharsi went and danced, but so far Jon had been successful at making polite conversation while praying the night would end. Giving her a small smile, he replied, "No, he didn’t."

"Well, I do. I mean, I think 99% of the guys I know would have run far away from her if it had been their kid. You took responsibility, and it’s not even your fault."

He shrugged and fiddled with the bottle of his ale, "Well, I think that says a lot about the cowardice about most guys. It’s kind of sad that our standards are so low. Believe me, it’s not some huge nuisance to be married to Dany."

"Oh, that is freaking sweet!" Ygritte exclaimed.

Jon wasn’t sure how exactly to respond to that, so he just smiled and said, "Thanks."

"So… how exactly does this work. Edd says you guys agreed to just stay married for a year? So when will the marriage be over?"

"Well, we got married January 3rd, so I guess we will file for divorce on or around that date. I think it takes months to get divorced here, though, even without any disputes, so I guess it won’t be final until later."

"But in the meanwhile… you have an open marriage?"

Jon felt incredibly awkward, having an idea what she was leading up to, but nodded, "I mean, she knew about this tonight… and didn’t care."

"Yeah, but is it totally open? Like… you could bring girls home if you wanted? It’s not like you two share a bed, right?"

"No, Dany has her own room. As far as our arrangement, I suppose I could bring people home, as long as I was discreet… however, that’s not really my thing."

"Such a gentleman!" she laughed, not discouraged by the fact that Jon had basically told her he wasn’t down with casual sex. As upstanding as he was, Jon was still a man… and she knew what men wanted.

Dany surveyed the room to be sure she had put away all the packages. Save for the pile of boxes in the corner with things she still had to assemble, it was all taken care of. Sighing, she hoped she’d be able to put the stroller and swing and all that together before the baby came. Unlike when she bought the furniture, she doubted she could get help from Jon.

Deciding she wasn’t quite ready for bed, Dany went to the kitchen and searched around for a snack. She grabbed a bag of Tostitos and a jar of salsa and set to devouring him while she wondered what, and hopefully not who, Jon was doing. What if going out with Ygritte reminded him of all he’d been missing for the past seven months? Her best case scenario was that he’d start going on a lot more dates. The worst case… she’d be seeing a lot more of Ygritte.

"Oh God, what if she starts spending the night?" Dany lamented to herself. There was absolutely no way she was going to be able to handle that!

Closing her eyes, Dany reminded herself that in five months the divorce they had only talked about would be a reality. Jon wouldn’t be there every day. He would date other girls… have sex with them. And she had absolutely no right to be upset. Anyway, as she’d realized before, she had Drogo. It didn’t matter if she didn’t have Jon, as long as she had Drogo.

Trying to feel confident in that fact, Dany put the food away and sat in the recliner in the living room to watch the news. She’d come to find the seat very relaxing… and was soon asleep.

"I had a really good time tonight," Ygritte smiled, "We’ll have to do it again sometime."

"Yeah," Jon replied in his best non-committal voice. At long last, he was almost home. Edd had the right idea, taking them all the way down so that they wouldn’t run into anyone they knew… and knew Jon had a very pregnant wife at home, but he hated the long drive it entailed.

"You have my number, right?"

Jon nodded, fully intending to be a typical guy and never call, "It’s in my wallet."

"Great!" she grinned.

Edd smirked at Jon through the rearview mirror, ignoring the way his friend glared back at him. Ygritte was definitely just the thing for him. It would take a few more dates, but if Jon could get a little more angry at Dany… and Edd could get a little liquor in him… the vixen would have him in her bed. As soon as Jon slept with Ygritte, Edd was positive he wouldn’t have to worry about Dany being a problem any longer.

They pulled up to the gate in front of the apartment complex and Edd was able to punch in the password without too much difficulty. Thirty seconds later, they were stopped in front of Jon’s apartment. Home had never looked so sweet!

"Let me walk you to your door," Ygritte offered, hoping it would lead to a lot more.

Jon shook his head, "No, I wouldn’t want you out on your own in the dark. Trust me, I’ll be fine."

Disappointed, she still smiled, "All right… call me, okay?"

"Sure… bye guys," Jon bid them farewell as he hurried out of the car and up the sidewalk to the door after the longest night of his life.

Jon quickly unlocked the door and entered the apartment, surprised to see Dany in the recliner. He soon saw that she was actually sound asleep, and deduced that she must have fallen asleep watching television. Opting not to wake her, since he was aware of her difficulties getting comfortable in bed every night, Jon gently pulled the remote out of her hand and turned off the television. Grabbing the thin quilt off the couch, he covered her before hastily kissing her forehead.

He couldn’t help it. As angry as he was with her for Drogo… and for hurting him so much… he loved her. Smiling, he stroked the back of his hand over her cheek; she was so beautiful, and in sleep she looked so peaceful. After a moment, he stood and turned out the lights before heading off to his own bed. As much as he hated to think about it, they had a lot of problems… and needed to discuss them the next day.

Tomorrow would most likely not be pleasant.


	54. Of walking alone

Dany gave Jon a smile as he walked out of the bedroom, happy to see that nobody was with him…. so he probably didn't bring Ygritte home. Besides, the fact that she had awoken with a quilt over her and the lights and television off did not elude her. A part of her couldn't help but be touched that he had made the effort. 

"Good morning." 

"Morning," he grumbled, grabbing a bowl from the cabinet and pouring himself some cereal. 

"So… how was your date last night?" 

"Fine." 

"What did you all do?" she asked. 

"We went to dinner and then a bar," he replied, then looked at her for the first time that morning, "It was such a nice change of pace; Ygritte ate her own meal and didn't touch my plate." 

Dany looked down, knowing the verbal jab was aimed at her. The last time they had gone out, she couldn't help but admire Jon's chili cheese fries and he had laughed and insisted she should help him eat them. Happily, she'd complied, but now she saw that it had really bugged him. 

"I'm sorry, but you know, I am eating for two." 

"Believe me, I noticed," he replied, a pointed look directed at her belly. 

Dany felt tears sting her eyes and rushed past him, out of the kitchen. Thankfully, she'd had a ton of nervous energy since waking up that morning and had already showered and dressed. Grabbing her purse, she called back at him, "I have to go… to the store." 

Jon heard her exit through the front door and sighed, feeling like a huge asshole. It wasn't right of him to say such mean things to her, especially since she was pregnant. Her emotions were out of control… besides, in birthing class they had said stress could induce labor. Even if they had meant high stress, upsetting her couldn't be healthy. 

Besides, he had hurt her… and even if he didn't like her talking to Drogo and it hurt him that she didn't care if he dated other girls… she didn't deserve to be mistreated by him. 

Jon resolved to apologize when she got home. She was just running to the store, so it wouldn't be long before she came back. He'd tell her he was sorry and didn't mean what he had said. After that… he'd stop being so gruff with her. It was her life and her baby… and no matter how much he loved her, he had no say in the matter. 

Missandei was surprised to hear someone knocking frantically at the dorm’s door. She rushed over to the door and flung it open… and found a distraught looking Dany on the other side. 

"Dany? What's wrong?" 

"Missandei…" she faltered, as she began to cry. 

Worriedly, she wrapped her arms around her as best she could, since it made it hard to get close to someone when they were due to give birth any day, and lead her inside her dorm. She managed to get her to sit on the bed before getting a glass of water. 

Bringing it back, she sat down beside Dany and stroked her hand over her back and tried to calm her down. After a moment, she'd relaxed enough to start sipping the water. 

Gently, Missandei asked, "What's wrong, Dany?" 

"Not really anything, I guess," she shrugged, "It's just… Jon said stuff to me and it hurt… really hurt. I never thought he would ever say such things to me." 

Dany had already told her that Drogo had called and she knew Jon was far from happy about it, that he wasn't really speaking to Dany except for what could be construed as civilized conversation. Dany was one of her best friends and Missandei loved her, even understood why she felt this need to speak to Drogo….. buts he could see exactly where Jon was coming from. 

"What did he say?" 

"Well, it all started last night… I think, anyway," Dany replied, "Edd showed up with two girls… he introduced me to them when we ran into each other at the mall yesterday. One of them is really into Jon. She was… okay… I guess. You know, if you like the whole thin, beautiful, pulled-together thing. So, like I said, he shows up with the girls last night and Jon goes with them on a double date." 

"Jon went on a date?!" Missandei exclaimed. She never, in a million years, would have guessed that Jon would go on a date with anyone other than Dany.

Dany nodded, "But I can't really be upset about it because he did ask me first to make sure I was okay with it. Of course, I said yes… it would have been really wrong to tell him no, you know?" 

"Not really," she told her, since she thought she should have said no because she did love him after all, "But go on." 

"I told him I didn't care if he went… so he did. At first I was pretty bummed and cried a lot… you know, that's my thing now… sitting around, being fat and crying. Then Drogo called again." 

Missandei groaned, "And you talked to him." 

"Of course I did. Missandei, he's the father of my baby. I know you hate him and I am still mad that he refused to be an active father, but I feel an obligation to him. I can't keep all details about his own daughter from him. Besides… it's nice being able to talk to him." 

She sighed, "Fine… what happened next?" 

"Well, I talked to Drogo, did some stuff and fell asleep in the recliner. I woke up this morning and saw that Jon had put a blanket on me and everything, so I was feeling kind of happy. Like, maybe things would be better between us. Unfortunately, Jon was his usual… not perky self. I still tried to be nice, though… asked him how his date was… and then he told me it was nice because his date didn't eat off his plate," she told her, her voice cracking as she started to cry again, "Because I ate off his plate the last time we went out! I'm pregnant, she's not! And… I know now that this sounds really stupid but it still totally hurts!" 

"I know," she said, wrapping her arm around her and pulling her against so her head rested on her shoulder, "Don't let it hurt you… he doesn't really mean it." 

"But it's true!" 

"So what? You ate off his plate, big deal. It's not like Jon's starving to death. Did he ask you not to do it?" 

"No, he invited me to," she answered. 

Missandei smiled down at her, "There you go. It didn't really bother him, he was just lashing out. You see… I think Jon's mad that you lied about not caring that he went on a date. He wants you to care and be upset and tell him not to go... because he wants you to love him. And as far as Drogo... you need to do something about him. You just can’t let him lurking around, like a shadow over your head" 

"I don't know," she shook her head, "I think it has less to do with me and more to do with Drogo being a man and that's why Jon doesn't trust him." 

"No, it's that Drogo is a man and Jon doesn't trust him with your heart… which is wise, all things considered." 

"But we're getting divorced, something Jon really doesn't seem very broken up about…. Why does he care?" 

"Dany, if you need me to tell you… maybe you don't need to know." 

She cocked her head to the side and looked at her closely, trying to figure out what she was suggesting. Giving her an incredulous look, she replied, "He doesn't love me." 

"Yes, he does!"Missandei argued, "Gods, you can't be that blind!" 

"Apparently so… if he loved me, how could he ever say those things?" 

"The same way you could tell him that you didn't care if he went on a date with someone else when you love him," she countered, "You're both so busy saying things because you're angry and jealous and hurting that you can't even see what's right in front of your faces. You love him, you know that. He loves you… and he told you that and showed you in so many ways on so many occasions that you ought to know it. Now you just need to pull yourself together and make it happen!" 

When Dany finally came in the door an hour after leaving, Jon was chomping at the bit. When he saw that she was sans any bags from the store, he grew suspicious. 

"Where have you been? I thought you were going to the store?" he interrogated. 

Dany frowned, knowing that Missandei's suggestion would never work. She still hadn't been positive that Jon had been in love with her, but she had come home with a new attitude to have an open mind and try not to let Jon's sour mood upset her. 

"I went," she replied. 

"And what did you buy? How come you don't have any bags?" 

"Because I bought a candy bar and ate it," she retorted, "Then I drove around for a little bit. Want to check my odometer? You're not my keeper, you know." 

Jon clenched his jaw, smelling the distinct aroma of aftershave on her, "Just out of curiosity, Dany… did you happen to brush up against a male clerk?" 

"What?" 

"Smell yourself! I'm not an idiot, you met him, didn't you?!" 

"Met…" she began, confused until it clicked in her mind, "You would think that!" 

"Yes, I would. Have you given me a reason not to think that?" 

"You know what? Why don't you go run off and call Ygritte up for a date? Then you'll have something else to do besides get all psycho about my life!" 

"Fine, I will!" he retorted, pulling his wallet out of his back pocket and retrieving from it the cocktail napkin that Ygritte had written her number on. Picking up his phone, he punched in the digits and waited for an answer on the other end of the phone. 

"Hello?" 

"Hi, Ygritte? This is Jon." 

Ygritte smiled widely, shocked to hear him calling, especially so soon. She'd really been discouraged the night before, but apparently Edd had been right, "Hi Jon… I'm so glad you called." 

"Well, I was wondering if you were free tonight." 

"For you? Absolutely," she giggled. 

Jon grinned, finding it a lot easier to appear enthusiastic around the girl when Dany was watching, "You know how you mentioned you had that sexy little red sports car? I was thinking it would be really great if we could take that for a spin." 

"Sure! Hell, I may even let you drive." 

He laughed, "Here's hoping…. I don't suppose you have a sexy little red number for yourself to go with it?" 

"Oh, I'm sure I could find something," Ygritte assured him. 

"Fabulous." 

Dany turned and stormed into her bedroom, deciding she couldn't stand there and listen to him any longer. She had to get out of that house. Grabbing a bag, she threw a towel, magazine and sunscreen inside before grabbing her maternity swimsuit that Aunt Cat had bought her and marching back out into the living room where Jon was hanging up the phone. 

"What are you doing?" 

"Going out." 

"Oh, to the store where you don't buy anything again?" 

"No, I'm going to the beach and you aren't my father… you aren't even my husband, so it's none of your concern," she replied, heading to the door. 

Jon snatched the swimsuit from her hand, "What are you doing, you can't swim?!" 

"Why not, I'm a whale, aren't I? It should be second nature." 

"Are you stupid?" he shouted, "You're eight months pregnant! You can't just jump in the ocean and get thrown all over!" 

"You are infuriating!" she screamed before leaving him alone in the apartment, her swimsuit still in his hand. 

Dany parked the car in it's normal spot and climbed out as quickly as she could in her condition. Looking out at the water, she realized Jon was right. There were quite a few waves coming in, big ones, and it definitely would have been hazardous for her to swim. 

Frowning, she decided to forget that Jon was right. It would be preferable to just forget Jon, period. Missandei was wrong, Jon couldn't love her. If he did, there was no way he could be acting this way. 

She closed her eyes and forced herself to calm down and push those thoughts out of her head. As the fragrance of the sea filled her senses and the wind gently blew her hair around, Dany found the peace she yearned for whenever she came to her special place. After a few moments, Dany kicked off her shoes, deciding a little wading couldn't do any harm. 

Besides, going anywhere near Jon sounded extremely unappealing.


	55. Of endings and new beginnings

As Jon went to answer the door, presuming it was Ygritte, he wondered for the dozenth time since she'd gone where Dany was. She had left her swimsuit, but perhaps she went to the beach anyway. However, he hoped she'd opted for one of her friends' homes, since he definitely didn't like her being off on her own when she was so far along in her pregnancy…. especially since she was upset. 

"Hey there," Ygritte purred, giving him a sexy smile as he opened the door, "You look wonderful tonight." 

"Thanks, you look very nice too," Jon replied, "Want to come in? I just need to grab my keys." 

"Sure," she said, stepping inside as he went back in his bedroom. Seeing Dany approach the door, Ygritte smirked, "Hi, what a surprise to see you!" 

"Really? I was the person putting the password in at the gate when you zipped on by and came in," Dany retorted. 

"Oh really? Well, thanks," Ygritte replied insincerely. 

Jon came out of his bedroom, keys in hand, and was visibly relieved to find his wife was home, her hair tousled, but still safe and sound, "Dany, I was getting worried." 

"Sure looks like it," she replied, then gave Ygritte a fake smile, "See you later… Emily?" 

"Ygritte," she corrected her, "You know, like the supermodel." 

"If you say so," Dany shook her head in amusement and walked to the kitchen, with Jon at her heels. 

"Dany, if you need me to stay-" he offered, partly because Dany looked pretty upset, but he was also actually kind of afraid to be alone with Ygritte. She was looking at him like he was a prey and she was famished. 

"No, by all means, go," she insisted, leaned closer to speak in a quiet voice, "She looks like a sure thing to me. You did request the red, after all." 

He knew she wasn't serious, though, and replied, "If you don't want me to go, I won't." 

Dany shrugged and played indifferent. 

Jon grew exasperated and shook his head. It was pointless to even try to be reasonable. "Fine, don't wait up." 

She stood in the kitchen, staring at the wall, for the longest time. As much as she hated it, a few stray tears slid down her cheeks before Dany got herself together. Rubbing her belly, she assured her daughter, "Mommy's not usually such a wimp, I promise you. And as soon as you're born and I get my hormones back to normal, you'll see that I am totally tough."

Walking into the bathroom, she frowned at her reflection in the mirror. She really was a mess. Her hair was going every which way, her make-up was mostly cried off and she had an all around frumpy look about her. This one really couldn't be blamed on her pregnancy… somewhere along the line, she'd just stopped making an effort. 

Picking up her brush, Dany attempted to fix her hair and continued, "You know, I was once considered very attractive… and if it kills me, I will look good again. Jon will see me and forget all about stupid Ygritte! And then we can have fun and tell him he lost his chance with Mommy!" 

Feeling a little bit better, Dany went and grabbed the phone and quickly dialed a number, "Grey? Do you guys have any plans for the night?" 

"Hello! Here we are, with pizza!" Tyrion announced, smiling brightly as Dany opened the door, "Personally, I don't think we should have offered to bring dinner since you invited us over and should have been responsible for feeding us, your guests, but I guess since you're pregnant, there are special rules and I bought a lot of wine. Plus, you're bummed because Jon left you all alone so he could get easy sex." 

"Oh Tyrion, I told you the girl wanted to give him easy sex, but I knew he'd say no, remember?" Missandei replied, then looked at Dany, "He's not going to have sex with her, I'm sure of it." 

Dany gave them a small smile, "Thanks for coming… I really appreciate the company." 

"It's fine," Missandei replied, walking into the apartment and setting the pizza boxes down on the table before going into the kitchen, “you feeling okay?" she asked. 

Dany nodded, "I'm trying not to think about Jon… and doing a lot better than I did last night. Thank God you guys are here or else I probably wouldn't have been able to avoid the endless 'what's he doing right now' questions that would drive me insane." 

Tyrion came out of the kitchen with plates, cups and two bottles of wine. Dany smiled at her before going and grabbing a bottle of water for herself out of the refrigerator. 

"So," Tyrion said as the four of them settled at the table, "I get to spend the evening with two beautiful women. What should we do? Kinky stuff?" 

Dany and Missandei rolled their eyes in unison as Grey side eyed, while Tyrion laughed at his own joke. 

"So… this guy that got Dany pregnant… he dumped her as soon as he found out?" Ygritte inquired as she sipped her wine. 

Jon shook his head, "They weren't a couple by the time she found out she was pregnant and he's not in the best position to be a father, so he told her he couldn't be involved." 

"Well that bites… so then you stepped up?" 

"Something like that." 

"Do you think Dany accepts this divorce thing, though? I mean, I know you guys agreed beforehand, but she seems like she might have this idea that you're really going to be her husband or something." 

"Trust me, she doesn't," Jon assured her. Their situation seemed to be the exact opposite, in fact. He had the idea that he could really be her husband… Dany was the one who wanted the divorce. 

"Yeah? I don't know… I mean, I know I have only seen her a few times… but I know people… and from what I can tell, there is a lot of stuff going on with her." 

"She's pregnant, it makes her emotional." 

"If that's what you think it is…" 

"I do," he said firmly, "Now, can we change the subject?" 

Ygritte was taken aback at how he seemed to be angry, but complied, "Sure…. Seen any good movies lately?" 

"So then he kidnaps her and sets to seducing her," Tyrion told Dany, in reference to the latest romance novel he'd finished. 

Confused, Dany asked, "Why did he kidnap his own wife? And how can you figure it out stuff like that?" 

"Because I drink and know things. He is a man and men have stupid ideas so he thinks that even if she's extremely reluctant to sleep with him, knowing he's her husband, in his mind he thinks if he knocks her out, ties her up and blindfolds her and has his wicked way with her… it'll make things all better," Tyrion explained, "But then he finds out she's not a virgin!" 

"Really?" 

"Check me out, Mommy!" Grey exclaimed, rushing out of Dany's bedroom with the newly-assembled stroller with a teddy bear in it. 

Dany grinned when she saw him, "You did it!" 

"Of course I did it, this is like my area of expertise," he told her, "Before the night is over, you'll have yourself a swing and play center too." 

"Thank you," she replied, kissing him on the cheek as he leaned down next to her. 

When Grey returned to the bedroom, Missandei scooted a little closer to Dany on the couch, "So… what does it feel like knowing Jon is with another girl? I try to imagine what would happen if I had to sit at home while Grey went on a date… and it makes me feel wretched." 

"Wretched is a pretty accurate description." 

"Well, then why did you let him go? Why didn't you tell him you were sick or something, make him stay with you?" 

"That's pathetic. Would you really want Grey to stay with you if he just did it out of guilt?" 

Tyrion who was overhearing thought it over for a moment before shrugging and replying before Missandei could, "Why would he not?" 

"Because when you love someone… you want them to love you back. You want them to want to be with you… not feel obligated," she sighed, "Trust me… I hope you're never in my place, but if you are… you'll see that it's humiliating." 

"You're right. I do enjoy knowing that Grey wants me just as much as I want him. It makes me feel special," Missandei replied.

Tyrion asked, "You're sure that Jon doesn't want you? I mean… he knows you don't always look all pregnant."

She smiled sadly and shook her head, "He makes fun of how big I am, how much I eat… would a man say those things to the woman he loved?" 

Tyrion shrugged, "Like I always say, men have stupid ideas." 

"You really didn't need to get out of the car," Jon told Ygritte as they walked to his apartment door. 

"Well, I'm hoping you'll invite me in tonight," she smiled. 

Dany grimaced from her bed inside the apartment as she cursed the window for being so… thin. Now she'd have to hear something she was positive she really didn't want to. 

"Look, I know you have certain… ideas… and I'm sorry, but I'm just not interested," Jon rebuffed her. 

"Why, because you're hung up on the pregnant girl?" 

"I'm not-" 

"Please, don't deny it. Edd told me, and even if he hadn't, I can tell the way you freak if I say anything remotely bad about her… Hell, I can tell by the way you look at her," Ygritte told him, "But it's not going to work, you have to know that. She's pregnant and it's not even your kid. You don't want her." 

"I don't want her? You don't know me. I don't want a girl just because she's beautiful, which Dany is, by the way. I want who Dany is. She's everything I want and love and need… rolled up into a tiny perfect package. I'm sorry, but you can't compare with that. You're not her." 

Inside her room, Dany lay stunned as she heard his words. He loved her. Missandei was right… Jon loved her! So much so, that he wouldn't even sleep with Ygritte! 

Ygritte sighed and shrugged, "I think you'll change your mind. I certainly hope so. When you do, give me a call?" 

"No offense," Jon replied, "But that's never going to happen." 

Long after Jon had gone into the apartment and headed straight to his room, Dany stared unseeingly at the ceiling, trying to process what had just happened. 

He really, truly loved her… and she loved him back. Everyone had been right… they ought to be together. Smiling, Dany decided she should try to make that happen. 

Dany realized that would never happen with Drogo in the picture. If Jon loved her, then he was jealous of Drogo and he didn't trust him… and it would always be an obstacle. Still… it didn't seem fair to shut Drogo out of his daughter's life, at least without giving him a chance. 

Picking up the phone, she hastily dialed his number. Drogo picked up after the first ring, "Hello?" 

"Hi Drogo," Dany replied. 

"Daenerys, is everything okay?" he asked worriedly, since it was awfully late for her to be calling. Plus, he'd only talked to her the night before. 

"It's fine…I just needed to ask you something," she answered honestly. She was 99.9% sure of the answer, but it only seemed fair to give him a chance to respond, "It's actually more of an ultimatum… and I hate those, but they are sometimes a necessary evil." 

"An ultimatum?" 

"Yeah… I… need more. I mean, I've enjoyed the phone calls with you, but I'm having a baby and phone calls just aren't going to cut it. I need you to be here for me, physically, not just emotionally. I need you to be here to hold my hand when I go into labor, to stay up with me nights when she won't sleep… to help change diapers and deal with potty training and everything," she explained, "I need for you to be a father to her. Giving her money… it helps… but it's not what she really needs. She deserves a father and I deserve for her to have a father too. But I know that if I have you on the phone in this… half-involved state… I'm never going to be able to make a relationship work. So basically, I need you to be in or out." 

"Dany, please…"

"No, I'm tired of doing things I don't want to do because you need me to so you can have what you want and need. I'm putting my daughter and myself first." 

"But you're saying if I don't drop my life and move to Dragonstone, I am cut off from my daughter." 

"First of all, you shouldn't worry about dropping your life for your daughter. I was ready to drop out of college and lose my family for her." Dany reminded him, "Second… I won't do that. It's not fair to not let you know anything about your daughter. But at the same time, it's not fair to make me deal with you when it hurts me so much…. So if you decide you can't be a part of our lives… you can go through Jorah. I'll make sure he knows he can tell you everything." 

"And the money I've given you? Are you going to use it?" 

"If I need it," she sighed, "Otherwise… she's got some money for college." 

"Are you sure you have to do this?" Drogo asked, knowing he didn't need to give her his answer. 

"Yes… please… let me have my chance, Drogo." 

"Okay," he replied sadly, knowing in his heart that this was best for Dany and the baby… to keep up the phone calls truly would be selfish. He'd have to settle for talking to Jorah.

"You know… I'll make sure you find out when she's born… so you'll know her birthday. If you want, you can send her birthday and Christmas gifts and I'll make sure she gets them. I can even send you pictures." 

"Really?" he asked hopefully. 

She smiled somberly, "I'd be happy to." 

After a few more moments of polite, morose conversation, the two hung up. Dany felt a bit of guilt, but knew she wasn't being cruel. Drogo had made his choice… and he did have a choice. 

Now she could try to work things out with Jon with a clear conscience.


	56. Of offroad

Jon awoke in a bad mood. Granted, he hadn't been in the best of moods for nearly a week, but he felt worse today than in ages. He was an utter and complete idiot. He'd had a girl practically throwing herself at him… but no, he loved Dany and it would feel so wrong to him if he were to sleep with anyone else. Of course, Dany didn't love him… didn't give a rat's ass if he did whatever he wanted with any other woman, because she was so busy talking to the man who got her pregnant and dumped her. 

He hated himself for being such a fool and was furious with Dany for not loving him back. It wasn't exactly fair, but when was love judicious? 

Knowing he had to be at work in an hour, Jon rolled out of bed and stumbled to the bathroom to take his shower. 

Dany hummed cheerfully as she poured some batter on the grill. The last time she'd made pancakes, Jon had told her she should be sainted. Didn't they say food was the way to a man's heart? 

She'd awakened that morning with a fresh attitude. Gone were the doubts and disbelief that Jon loved her. The conversation she had heard the night before was much more convincing than anything else she had heard before. When Jon had come out and told her that he loved her, she'd worried it was only because he felt guilty or just liked being her hero. When his family had told her, she figured it was just because they wanted her to stay with Jon, as she'd thought when Grey had tried to convince her. However, when Jon had told Ygritte that he loved Dany, she'd seen that there was no reason to lie. In fact, it would have been easier for him to not admit it. 

Jon loved her and she loved him. They had a lot of issues to work out, a major one being Drogo, but she was confident they could do it. She knew Jon had to work that day, but if she got him off to a good start with her new attitude and a good breakfast, perhaps she could get him to agree to sitting down and having a talk with her over dinner that night. 

Just as she put the fourth pancake on a plate and turned off the grill, Jon walked out of his bedroom in his uniform. 

"Perfect timing," she smiled and held up the plate, "I made you breakfast. I feel like I owe it to you because… I'm really sorry about last night. I was in full hormonal monster mode." 

Jon slowly nodded, "You were pissed that I went… and you insisted that I go." 

"I'm sorry I was so cranky… but what did you expect me to do? It's your life!" 

He wanted to grab her and shake her and scream that it was their life, but he just clenched his fists and tore his gaze away from her perfect face, knowing he would lose all his willpower if he kept looking at her, "I accept your apology, okay? Don't worry about it. I'm used to it after all these months. I can't wait until you have the baby... then maybe the you'll be bearable until we can get divorced." 

She hated herself for it, but Dany let his words get to her. Tears welling in her eyes, she set the plate down on the counter, "Well, I'm sorry I am not even bearable. Why don't we just get divorced now?" 

"What?" he asked, taken aback. 

"Why not? I know my uncle would be thrilled to have me home… and I have a job now so that's taken care of. If that's what you really want, we can just get divorced now." 

"You're insane. I swear, you get pregnant and lose all of your sanity." 

"If I am insane, it's probably from you, always snapping at me, no matter what I do! I tell you to go on a date, you get mad. I apologize, you get mad. I can't win with you!" she shouted, rushing past him to her bedroom door, which she slammed behind her. 

"The dramatic exits stopped working a while ago. However, if you'd like to get us evicted, just keep slamming doors!" Jon screamed as he grabbed his keys and stormed out the front door. 

His hands were shaking as he walked into the garage and climbed in his truck. What if she wasn't there when he got home? As angry as he was at her… he couldn't bear the thought of not being able to see her every day. 

No… she would see that they couldn't get divorced now. Once she calmed down, she'd come to her senses and forget the whole thing. Still tense, Jon backed out of the garage and drove through the complex. He began the journey to the Night's Watch driving a bit faster than normal, not paying attention like he usually did. Instead, his thoughts were focused on the silver haired he was utterly in love with at home… and what a mess he'd gotten himself into. 

He was so focused on thoughts of Dany that Jon never saw the 'road closed' sign until it was too late. Slamming on the brakes, he tried to stop in time…. only to lose control….


	57. Of being fine

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry about the delay. I had a health emergency but now I'm back with more angst but heading out to much love!

After twenty minutes of crying, ranting and pacing in her room, Dany reemerged to get something to drink. She really didn't know what she was going to do. She loved Jon, wanted to try making it work so they could spend the rest of their lives together…. But on the other hand, he was already causing her a world of pain. They weren't even a couple and he always managed to bring her to tears with just a few cutting words. 

Pouring herself a glass of juice, Dany walked out into the living room when a photo on the end table caught her attention. She picked it up, staring down at the image of Jon and her on their wedding day. It had been a part of their wedding package and they'd decided to go along with it, at least to be able to show it to all the guys at Castle Black and make them happy. 

She traced her finger over Jon's face and thought about all that had happened since then… they'd moved into the apartment, made love, they'd had so much fun putting together the baby's furniture, gone to Winterfell together… and then all the latest crap with Ygritte. He'd changed a lot… at least in her eyes. All those months ago, Jon had been this sweet, idealistic guy that had everything going for him and she was sure whatever he did in life, it would be great. Now she saw that he had flaws, like anyone else. He couldn't sing for anything. He sometimes let his pride and anger get the better of him, like when it came to Drogo. Sometimes she caught him drinking straight from a juice or milk carton and putting it back in the refrigerator… 

But she was absolutely, 100%, truly, madly, deeply in love with Jon Snow. 

She set down the glass and the picture before turning and slowly walking to Jon's bedroom… the room where they had shared their one night of passion. It was a night she'd never forget… and when she was perfectly honest with herself, it was a night she never wanted to forget. 

She entered the room and sat down on the bed, immediately leaning over to bury her face in the pillows, deeply inhaling an aroma that was purely Jon. It was a combination of his shampoo, soap and cologne… and Dany couldn't imagine a man having a better scent. 

Knowing it was an incredible invasion of his privacy, but unable to stop herself, Dany moved around the room, taking her time as she looked over his pictures of his family, the containers of cologne and deodorant on his dresser, all his grooming supplies on the counter of his bathroom… and she was overcome with the thought that she couldn't lose him. She hadn't been serious about moving in with her uncle. She couldn't leave and just give up. They had to work things out because Dany couldn't be away from him. She'd already had to go through the loss of Drogo…. it was too late to stop herself from falling in love with Jon… so she'd be damned if she let him walk out of her life without a fight. 

Dany was startled out of her reverie by the telephone ringing. She quickly picked up the extension in Jon's room, "Hello?" 

"Is this, uh… Daenerys Snow?" 

"Yes," Dany frowned, since it wasn't often that she was referred to by that name. Usually it had to do with legal stuff. 

"Hello, Ma'am, I'm calling from Dragonstone General," the voice on the other end explained, "I'm afraid your husband has been in an accident." 

Dany's heart stopped beating for a moment. Trying not to panic, she asked, "An accident? What sort of an accident?" 

"A car accident," the person replied, "He's just now being brought into the emergency room, so I don't have any details on how badly he was injured." 

"Oh God… um… I'll be down there right away. Thank you for calling," Dany replied, shakily hanging up the phone. 

Moving as briskly as possible in her condition, Dany grabbed her purse and went to her car, praying everything would be all right. When Jon had left, he'd been pissed as all hell… and that was because of her. If that had caused him to get in an accident… this was all her fault! Swearing that she would never forgive herself if Jon wasn't okay, Dany backed out of the garage and headed to Dragonstone General Hospital's emergency room… a place she was unfortunately all too familiar with. Never, however, had she been so scared going there. 

Unfortunately, Dany couldn't find a parking place anywhere near the entrance to the emergency room and had to curse the hospital for not having expectant mother parking like even the mall did as she trudged up the doors. Her heart pounding so loud that she was sure everyone in the building could hear it, Dany approached the front desk. 

"Hello, I got a phone call that my husband was brought in here." 

"What's his name?" the man behind the desk asked. 

"Jon Snow." 

The man looked at a board on the wall and nodded, "He's Dr. Pycelle's patient. I'll send for him now." 

"Thank you," she nodded, turning to look around the emergency room, praying the doctor would be quick. Gods, why did she have to fight with Jon? If she'd just kept her mouth shut, he'd be fine. Now he was… hurt… she had no idea how badly… what if he died and she had to live with the fact that the last time they'd seen each other, they had fought. 

"Mrs. Snow?" an older man with glasses and a white coat asked as he approached her. 

Once again, Dany was struck by how strange that name sounded as she slowly nodded, "Are you Jon's doctor?" 

"Yes, I'm Dr. Pycelle, let's have a seat, okay?" 

She allowed him to lead her to some plastic seats that were bolted to the floor, as though someone would actually want to steal them, and grappled to sit down with his help. 

Once she was situated, the doctor sat in the seat beside her and turned so he was facing Dany, "Your husband was in a very serious accident. As best the police can tell, he was driving too quickly when he came upon a closed road and didn't have enough time to stop. He skidded out of control and rolled his vehicle." 

"Oh Gods," Dany exclaimed, tears filling her eyes. 

The doctor nodded and continued, "However, he was extremely lucky. No broken bones, just cuts and bruises and a concussion." 

"Really?" 

"Yes, he'll be absolutely fine in no time," the doctor assured her. 

"But… isn't a concussion serious? I mean, it's a head injury." 

"Well, I'm going to keep him here overnight. He needs to be kept under observation, besides, you are in no condition to be taking care of him. I'm optimistic that he will be fine to leave tomorrow afternoon." 

"Oh thank you, doctor, that is so wonderful!" Dany smiled widely and squeezed the doctor's hand. 

Dr. Pycelle returned the smile, "You're very welcome." 

"Can I see him?" she asked, not caring that they were supposed to be on the outs. Seeing Jon alive and somewhat well was far more important. 

The man nodded as he stood up, "Just give us about fifteen minutes, okay?" 

"Yes, thank you again," she replied, sighing in relief as the doctor walked away. Dany tried to settle back and relax until it was time, but even without being totally worried about Jon, she was tense. Hell, she hadn't been able to relax in ages because the baby was always pushing on something or she was hot or aching… and that was before she'd almost had a heart attack. 

Her thoughts came to Aunt Cat and she realized that she had better give her mother-in-law a call. Even if her baby was still in-utero, Dany felt like a mother and knew if her child was in trouble, she would want someone to call her immediately. 

She knew the phone number by heart and quickly placed the call. 

"Hello!" 

"Mrs. Stark… er… Aunt Cat!" Dany asked. 

"Hi Sweetheart! What's going on? You sound a little upset." 

"No, I'm not upset… not really," Dany took a deep breath, "Um.. maybe you should sit down." 

"Oh God, what is it? Is the baby okay? Jon?" 

"Are you sitting down?" 

"Yes, yes, now please tell me, Dany!" 

"Jon had a car accident," Dany explained, "I'm at the hospital and they haven't let me see him yet, but the doctor did talk to me and he's going to be fine." 

"Oh my God, poor baby," Aunt Cat lamented, "What are his injuries?" 

"He has a concussion and cuts and bruises, they said. He was very lucky," she replied, opting not to mention the details of the accident. 

"I bet this wouldn't have happened in a better car. I always hated that truck, Dany! It was a deathtrap! You weren't in the car too, were you?" 

"No, he was alone… I haven't been able to get in that thing for months," Dany smiled slightly, "But it wasn't because he was in the truck that he had the accident." 

"Oh, I know, but maybe he wouldn't have been injured at all in a different kind of car!" 

She restrained from telling Aunt Cat that injuries in any vehicle were probably inevitable in a rollover, "Well, it really doesn't matter now. What's done is done… and he'll be okay." 

"How long before he's out of the hospital?" 

"The doctor told me he's aiming for tomorrow afternoon." 

"Well, I am going to get plane tickets for Ned and myself as soon as possible." 

"That's not necessary! Jon will be okay, I promise you. I'll take good care of him." 

"Honey, you're in no condition to be taking care of him… in fact, you need someone taking care of you. We're coming." 

Dany sighed, knowing there was no arguing with her, "I hope Jon doesn't get mad. You know he doesn't like people making a big fuss." 

"Oh, he just thinks he doesn't like it. He'll be fine," Aunt Cat assured her, "Now, will you make him call me when you get to see him?" 

"Sure," Dany agreed, "I'll talk to you later, then." 

"Okay, I love you Sweetheart," Aunt Cat replied. 

She couldn't help but smile, "I love you too."

Jon frowned as someone knocked on the door of the hospital room he had just been moved to. Slowly turning his head in the direction of the door, he called, "Come in."

Dany slowly came into the room, a worried look on her face, before she promptly broke down into tears, "I'm so sorry!"

"What?" he asked, confused, "Sorry for what?"

"This is my fault," she explained as she continued to cry, "You were mad at me and that made you drive crazy and get in an accident."

Jon shook his head, "No, I was being an idiot and driving crazy and got in an accident. Don't blame yourself."

"I can't help it… you wouldn't have been driving like an idiot if not for me."

He sighed, not quite ready to tell her it wasn't all her fault that he was so in love that she made him crazy. Looking down, Jon replied, "Look, you didn't make me fight with you. It wasn't a one-sided thing. This accident wasn't your fault, it was mine."

"But…"

"Hey… I'm the injured one here with a killer headache… can't you just go easy on me and not disagree?" he asked, giving her a small smile.

Dany couldn't help but smile back and him before she slowly nodded and took a few tentative steps towards him, "Are you really going to be okay?"

"I'll be fine… just wanting to kill myself… I'm pretty sure the truck is totaled."

"Nobody mentioned the condition of the truck to me, and I was pretty busy being focused on you," she told him, "But the doctor told me you rolled it, so I am not counting on it being undamaged."

"Wonderful," he groaned.

"Don't worry about it right now, I have my car and we can make do with one car for the time being," Dany said, easing herself into the chair beside his bed.

"I don't want to put you out. You're eight months pregnant, I don't want you without a car."

She shook her head, "I work twice a week and go to the grocery store. I don't need anything, I have everything for the baby… I don't need my car that much. Besides, my uncle would love to chauffeur me anywhere my heart desires."

Jon looked over at her, wishing more than ever that things could just be simple, that she could be his wife and they could raise this child as their own. He loved both of them so much… losing them would break his heart.

"Uh, there is one thing I have to tell you about."

"What?"

"Well, I had to call your aunt. I knew she would kill me if I didn't… and I felt she had a right to know," Dany confessed.

"I know you're absolutely right about her killing you if you didn't call her… but I really wish you hadn't. Did she flip out?"

"Not really," she answered, "I mean, she had a… strong… reaction… but that's how your aunt is. I didn't tell her that you had rolled your truck, though."

"Thank God, she always hated it anyway."

"Yeah… she said that," Dany bit her lip, "And she also is insisting on coming to town with your dad."

"Oh, you're kidding," he groaned.

"I'm sorry," she sighed, "You know how she is."

"Yeah," Jon chuckled, "I do."

Looks like they had to make way for Hurricane Aunt Cat.


	58. Of options

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just realized we are only 10 chapters from the final.... can't believe it. I'll miss it a lot.

Dany glanced at her watch and saw that she had twenty minutes before she needed to get to Dragonstone airport to meet Jon's parents. 

She went and pulled the envelope with all her checking account information out of the drawer she had stuffed it in all those months earlier. After she'd gotten home the night before, she had put laundry away and had noticed it. It was strange, she saw it every day but never really thought about it. But then she had never needed money before.

Opening the envelope, she found a pamphlet inside with instructions on how to access her account on the internet. Dany went to Jon's bedroom and turned on the computer. A few moments later, she was at the bank's website and logging in.

"Oh my God," she gasped, upon seeing the balance.

"Oh, there he is!" Aunt Cat exclaimed as she rushed into Jon's hospital room, "My poor baby! He looks so pale, doesn't he look pale, Ned?"

Ned Stark winked at his daughter-in-law as the two of them followed her in, "He looks fine, Darling."

"Oh, what do you know about it, anyway," she replied as she kissed her nephew on the cheek, "I don't know if I want to hug you or smack you more!"

"Please, don't do either… my entire body feels like one big bruise," Jon said.

"Ned, help Dany sit down," Aunt Cat ordered, "She looks like she could be giving birth any time now. You know I can tell these things."

Dany frowned as she and Ned complied. Giving birth had always been this foreign futuristic idea. It was never something she had to really do… it was something that would happen someday… but Aunt Cat was right, that day was rapidly approaching… and she was terrified.

"Have you seen that doctor of yours? I want to know how you're doing."

"He's obviously doing okay," Ned sighed, sitting on the edge of Jon's bed, "Just needs time to recuperate."

"You don't know that," Aunt Cat protested before she opened the curtains and blinded the other three occupants of the room, "He could be internally bleeding or something."

"Aunt, I wasn't internally bleeding yesterday, so I wouldn't just start doing it in the middle of the night."

"Well, I certainly hope so, since your doctor doesn't seem to care."

Jon sighed, "He told me yesterday that he wouldn't be back until noon."

"It's twelve-thirty."

"He has other patients," Ned reminded her.

"You know, you ought to calm down because I am injured and Dany's pregnant and you're stressing us out," Jon smiled at the her.

"Well, I'm sorry but when my nephew gets in a horrible car accident, I get a little wound up!" Aunt Cat retorted, "Dany told me that they said your truck was totaled, I made her."

Dany shrugged, "I was weak."

"I'm sorry I scared you, but I'm going to be fine."

"Cat, why don't we go try to find this doctor to see when we can take Jon home?" Ned suggested, standing up and holding his hand out to her.

Aunt Cat thought it over before nodding and smiling, "Okay, and then we can leave these two alone."

Jon rolled his eyes, but neither of them made any comment, knowing it was useless.

As soon as Aunt Cat and Ned left the room, an old man with white hair approached them, "Are you Mr. and Mrs. Stark, Jon's family?"

"Yes," Aunt Cat replied, then smiled she realized who that might be, "And you must be Aemon Targaryen!"

"I am," Aemon returned the smile, "I have so much to thank you for. You were so wonderful to my niece."

"Well, she is a sweet girl. We really love her, don't we, Ned?"

Ned nodded, "Like she's a part of the family."

Catelyn was so excited, she wasn't able to resist checking to see if Aemon felt the same way as them, "In fact, we wish she was… we hate their little plan just because of the divorce part."

Aemon sighed, "I agree… it must be obvious to anyone who looks that they both love each other. I wish they'd just get it together and admit it to one another."

"Well, they are alone in there right now," Aunt Cat grinned, gesturing to the closed door, "Maybe Jon's accident will make them see that they ought to live for the day and be happy with each other!"

Once they were alone in the room, Dany took a deep breath, "There's something I wanted to talk to you about."

"Yeah?" he asked, "Is everything okay?"

Dany nodded quickly, "It's nothing horrible… or even bad, really. It's just that I was thinking… once the insurance company puts the paperwork through, you'll get a check, but as you said yesterday, it won't be enough to pay for another new car."

"Yeah, but it'll make a good down payment and I'm sure I can afford to make car payments."

"Well, I think I have a way for you to not need to," she said, "I can give you ten thousand dragons. That, plus the insurance money should be enough."

"Ten thousand dragons?!" Jon exclaimed, "Where did you get that kind of money?"

Dany shrugged, "Does it really matter?"

"Yes, it does! Don't you even try telling me that you got this money working for Jorah. You haven't made that much money, not even counting all you've spend on the baby. So unless you won the lotto, you have some other source of income, because I can't imagine anyone is just throwing ten grand at you…." Jon trailed off as he realized something, "Except for Drogo."

She looked down, not wanting to have to look in his eyes, "It doesn't matter where I got it, Jon."

"Bullshit! You know very well how I would feel about this. What, you called Drogo up and told him I got in a wreck and he was ever so happy to play your knight in shining armor the easiest way possible and give me money?"

"No," she shook her head, "He set up a checking account for me. The balance is ten thousand dragons."

"So, that's why you let him call you. He bought you? Is that it?"

Dany felt her eyes well with tears as she shook her head more fervently this time, "You would say something like that. Look, I'm offering this to you because I don't want it and I wanted to repay you for-"

"You can't buy me!" Jon snapped. 

"I'm not trying to buy you! I'm trying to say thank you!" she began crying harder as she felt like her still-beating heart was being ripped from her chest, "Don't you get it? Are you really so blind that you don't see what's right in front of you?"

"Oh, I see it," Jon shouted, "And I'm beginning to regret ever laying eyes on it."

Dany choked on a sob and pushed herself out of the chair so she could rush from the room.

The trio outside had inadvertently heard the tail end of their argument and were taken aback when an obviously upset Dany came rushing out of the room. Aemon immediately put his hands on his niece’s shoulders and tried to calm her down.

Aunt Cat took one look at the sobbing girl and stormed into Jon's room, her husband close on her heels, trying to stop her. Ned knew that as much as Jon would comply with his aunt's wishes and allow her to interfere with his life, he obviously wasn't in the mood to deal with it right then.

"What is the matter with you?" Aunt Cat hissed.

Jon groaned, "Aunt Cat, listen, you know I love you and I respect you and everything… but this is my life and I can't listen to you telling me what I should and shouldn't do right now."

"Well, someone has to tell you what to do, since you obviously can't figure out what's right on your own!"

"What's between Dany and I is none of your business! I'm sorry, but you need to accept that if I want to divorce her, I'm going to and you have no right to say anything!"

Aunt Cat was infuriated beyond words; her nephew could be positively stubborn at times! Turning to Ned, she said, "Try and talk some sense into him, would you?"

Without waiting for a response, she left the two of them in the room and walked back into the hallway to find that Aemon and Dany were sitting on a couch about ten feet away. Slowly, she approached them and stood in front of the couch, not saying anything, no matter how much she wanted to. Aemon was Dany's uncle and she didn't want to step on any toes. Instead she just stood and watched on as Dany slowly stopped crying.

"Sweetling, please don't let this upset you so much, it's not good for you or the baby," Aemon sighed, pushing Dany's hair behind her ear.

"It's not something I can help," she replied.

"I know," Aemon sighed again, putting his arm around Dany's shoulders and slowly rocked her. He hated seeing his niece so distraught. If at all possible, he was going to spare Daenerys of any pain.

Pulling back a bit so that she could look at her, Aemon asked, "Maybe you should come stay with me?"

"What?" Dany asked, caught completely off guard. Even if she had told Jon she could move in with her uncle… it was never something she has seriously considered.

"I was just thinking that you could come back home… I could take time off work so I could make sure you get enough rest and everything… I don't want you to have to pay for your own apartment when you get divorced… so maybe you should just move in now. We can have everything settled in before the baby comes… and then I don't have to worry about you getting upset."

Aunt Cat's heart began beating rapidly and she turned and once again rushed into Jon's room. She had to make him see reason.


	59. Of hormones

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> More angst, because I like it!

"Dad, I am turning twenty-two in a matter of days, you two are going to have to start treating me like an adult," Jon told his father a few seconds after his aunt had left the room.

Ned sighed and nodded, taking the seat beside Jon's bed, "I know that Jon… but haven't you ever watched someone you love doing something that you really disagree with? You know that it really isn't your place to say anything, but it's unbearable to watch them do this thing that you know is a mistake?"

Jon nodded, thinking of how Dany kept talking to that bastard, Drogo.

"Well, that's how your aunt and I feel. You know we love you and want what is best for you. Dany's a great girl… we love her too… and we think that she would make a great wife for you. We think she'll make you happy."

"Dad, you guys don't know all the details."

"I know that. I'm sure there is a whole lot that we don't know," Ned sighed, "But we know you love her… and she loves you. Maybe I'm naïve… but I thought that was all that matters. If you had those two things, you could make everything else work."

Jon was silent, and before he could come up with a response, Aunt Cat came back in the room, looking angrier than when she'd left, if that were possible.

"Aemon's currently trying to talk her into coming home and I think he is close to doing it. You had better start fighting for what you want before what you want disappears!"

Even though every muscle in his body protested, Jon sat up in bed, "Please, go tell her I want to talk to her."

Dany slowly opened the door to Jon's room, taking one look back at the three people in the hallway. Ned and Aunt Cat had small encouraging smiles on their faces while Aemon looked worried. As much as he trusted the Starks, he didn't want Dany getting upset yet again.

She entered the room and studiously avoided making eye contact with Jon, "Your aunt said you wanted to talk to me."

"Are you moving out?" he asked, sitting up a little straighter as he tried to get Dany to look at him. When she didn't respond, he held out his hand, "Come here."

She gingerly walked over to him and took his hand, sitting on the edge of the bed, "Aemon said I could come home and-"

"You have a home… with me," he told her, gently squeezing her hand, "Dany, I'm sorry… it's just that Drogo makes me completely crazy. I think he is a fool and a jerk and a bunch of other bad things that make him unworthy of you. So… it just makes me insane that you let him back in. He doesn't deserve that kind of gift."

She nodded slowly and admitted, "I told him not to call me anymore."

Jon's jaw dropped. After a few seconds, he pushed her hair back over her shoulder so that he could see her better, "Why didn't you tell me?"

"You haven't really been willing to listen to me," Dany replied, her eyes once again stinging with tears. She tried to stand, but Jon continued to grip her, "Jon-"

"Don't go," he pleaded softly, knowing that if she left the room, he couldn't follow… and if he couldn't convince her not to move out right away, she'd be gone by the time he was out of the hospital… and if she moved out… he'd have a hell of a time getting her to move back in.

"Give me one reason to stay," she said, meeting his eyes, hoping desperately that he would.

"Because I want you to," Jon replied softly, praying that was reason enough.

"I wish I could take you two out tonight, but your doctor says you must rest, Jon," Aunt Cat said as she walked alongside Jon's wheelchair as a nurse pushed him through the hospital to where Dany and Ned were supposed to be waiting with the car, "Maybe I can fix a pot roast. Dany and I can go to the store."

"She can't be running all over town, Aunt, she's due in eleven days."

"I know that, Jon! I will make sure that Dany's in the proper condition to do whatever I try to get her to do," she replied pointedly, making it clear that she hadn't forgiven him for the fight he'd had with Dany a few hours earlier.

Jon sighed and looked up at the nurse, "This stress can't be good for me, maybe I'd better stay."

"Don't listen to him," Aunt Cat told the smiling nurse.

At last they went through the automatic doors and found Dany and Ned standing in front of the CRV. Jon shrugged off help from the nurse and climbed in the passenger seat, grateful to finally be getting out of that hospital, but wishing he didn't have to deal with his aunt. He knew that they needed her- he really wasn't back to full health and Dany didn't need to be taking care of him- but she was going to drive him nuts.

"Dany, this is such a nice little car! It's very cute," Aunt Cat commented, "It will be perfect when you have the baby. Isn't it nice, Ned?"

"Well, it's foreign," Ned grunted.

"You know what Robb told you, most of those Westerosi car engines are made by foreign car companies," Aunt Cat reminded him.

"Oh God, here we go again," Jon quietly told Dany in the front seat, "I think I know this argument word for word now."

"I heard that!" Aunt Cat scolded, "He thinks he's hysterical, Dany, but he's not!"

Jon could tell that Dany was trying not to laugh and was pleased. After he'd asked her not to leave, she'd simply nodded before getting up and leaving the room. A few moments later Aunt Cat had come into the room and told him he'd managed to stop Dany from moving… and he was very lucky. He hadn't disagreed. However, Dany hadn't been overly friendly. She really didn't say anything or even look at him if she could help it. Even though she wasn't moving out, Jon knew he needed to fix some things with her.

"Jon!" Aunt Cat called in a singsong voice.

Jon put his forearm over his eyes, "Gods, Aunt, why do you hate me?"

"I don't hate you, Sweetheart. I love you… I want to make sure you're okay."

He groaned, wishing she'd never gotten the idea to wake him up every hour. How was he ever supposed to get any rest this way? "Well, I'm awake and alive and all that, can I go back to sleep now?"

"No, have some water."

"I'm not thirsty."

"Jon, do you want me to go get Dany and make her come in here and give you water?" she threatened.

He moved his arm off his face and gave her a strange look, "Why would you do that? I don't want her having to take care of me."

"Good, because that would be wrong in her condition… but if I get her to do it, I think you'll feel so bad for making her get up and wait on you that you will drink the water like I want you to."

Jon sighed and pushed himself up in the bed before holding out his hand for the glass of water. Quickly, he put the glass to his lips and took several gulps. Holding up the half-empty glass, he asked, "Is that enough?"

"Yes," Aunt Cat smiled triumphantly, "Now, before you fall back asleep, we're eating at six-thirty, so when I wake you up at six, I want you to stay awake so you can wash up for dinner, okay?"

Jon nodded as he settled back under the covers, "That's fine."

She left him alone in the room a few moments later, and since he wasn't as exhausted as a few moments earlier, Jon looked around Dany's bedroom, smiling at how she had all the baby's furniture ready, just waiting for the baby to come. Dany had insisted that he could sleep in her room and his parents in his room since most of the time she could only sleep comfortably out on the recliner in the living room anyway. Nobody had wanted to give her much argument, since they were all worried about her stress level, so she'd gotten her way.

His thoughts once again drifted to the fact that she'd come mighty close to leaving him. Aemon didn't appear to be mad at him when he'd come into his hospital room a while after Dany had agreed to stay, but he didn't doubt that he screwed up again, he'd try to get Dany to move in with him. He had to get Dany on his good side… ass-kissing was definitely in order.

Jon heard the front door open through the window and frowned as he heard his aunt`s voice.  
"Now, Dany, don't you let Jon upset you. He's my nephew and I love him, but he is still male and… well, Sweetheart, men have a tendency to be complete fools."

Jon frowned as he heard Dany laugh. How was he supposed to get anything done with his aunt around?

"Dany, eat more," Aunt Cat insisted, pushing the bowl of mashed potatoes towards her daughter-in-law.

Dany, feeling very uncomfortable and not in the mood to politely acquiesce to Aunt Cat's every desire, shook her head adamantly, "No, I don't want more."

"Honey, you need it," she insisted.

Jon would have jumped to Dany's defense, especially since he could see by the look on her face that she wasn't about to give in, but she really hadn't eaten much at all.

"I have to cut down, Jon thinks I'm a pig," Dany retorted.

Jon's eyes bulged as both shot him dirty looks, "What?! I never said that! Never!"

"He made fun of me for eating his chili cheese fries. He offered first, though!" she exclaimed, near tears.

He looked at her like she was insane, wondering what had possessed her to say that in front of his family. Aunt Cat patted Dany's hand and tried to soothe her as Ned gave his son a commiserating smile. As Dany almost instantly calmed back down again, Jon realized it was just Dany's wonderful hormones in overdrive. He remembered Talisa having some wild mood swings… he just hadn't seen them in Dany before.

"Are you sure it's a good idea that Dany works so close to her due date? It's a week from today! Besides, first babies tend to come early," Aunt Cat said, "And she's a teenager and teen mothers usually go into labor early!"

"Aunt, if you want to try to get Dany to sit at home instead of working and wait around while we go shopping for a car, feel free. Just warn me first so I can put in my earplugs," Jon replied as he finished his breakfast.

"Very amusing, Jon," she commented as she sipped her coffee, "I can't believe Jorah is letting her work."

"Jorah just values his sanity. He knows that if he tells Dany she can't work, he's going to get an earful, so it's easier to give her a few hours a week and make sure someone else is working at the same time… so if she gets tired she can rest. I'm sure he won't let her overdo it."

"I certainly hope not," Aunt Cat sighed.

Dany opened the bathroom door and marched out into the dining room, "Jon!"

Stunned, the two of them looked at the furious-faced pregnant woman.

"Yes?" he gulped.

"You left the toilet seat up! I was stuck for twenty minutes," Dany yelled at him.

"I'm sorry."

"You're sorry?! Sorry, just… sorry," Dany ranted, then looked at Aunt Cat, "Can you believe him?"

"He won't do it again, will you?"

Jon swiftly shook his head. Dany sighed and turned to go to her bedroom to finish getting ready.

"Why does she seem to hate me especially?" he asked, "I mean, yeah, she gets a little… nutty… with you and Dad, but she really seems to zero in on me."

"Well… she knows you better. You're always a little more comfortable making people you know miserable. Plus… you're her husband and she's forgetting that you aren't the only one responsible for putting her in this position." 

Jon rolled his eyes, "I'll stick with the idea that she knows me better… lucky me."

"Do you ever worry that you won't be able to look like you did before you got pregnant?" Tyrion asked Dany as he arranged merchandise in the display case beneath the counter.

"Only always," Dany sighed from her perch on a stool. She had absolutely nothing to do besides ring up customers. She wasn't able to get down on the floor to work on the display case, Jorah didn't want her using the ladder or lifting most of the merchandise, and she'd already gone over everything with a feather duster. 

She would have complained if she'd actually felt compelled to do anything besides sit on the stool and ring up the occasional customer. Her energy level had vastly diminished in the last few weeks. Lugging around all the extra weight of the baby in the summer heat was enough to make her want a nap. At least she wasn't sitting bored at home. Lord knows she couldn't have gone shopping with Jon and his parents for the new car they were buying him as an early birthday present/reward for marrying the poor pregnant girl.

Not that she wanted to, anyway. Dany was quite fed up with Jon at the moment. When he'd talked her into coming home, she'd expected him to do something. After the conversation between Jon and Ygritte that she'd overheard, she knew he loved her… okay, she was pretty sure he loved her… so why didn't he say so? Why didn't he give her some sign that he didn't want a divorce? She was starting to get the impression that he'd only asked her to stay to get Aunt Cat off his back….

Realizing that Tyrion was looking at her, Dany started paying attention again, "What?"

"I just said that it looks like you ate yourself, that's how big you are."

Dany immediately started to cry, "God, Tyrion, I can't help it! I'm having a baby and my doctor says my weight is perfectly normal! My ankles are swollen, my back hurts and I can't spend too long on my hair, make-up or anything because I have to pee constantly and if I don't go as soon as the urge hits me, I'm in pain!"

Tyrion stared at her, "Are you having a nervous breakdown?"

Still crying, Dany shook her head.

"Oh yes, that's right! I read about it. The hormones are abnormal and will make you act erratic and irrational. Hmm… well I was supposed to not comment on your appearance…. oops. I'm sorry, I understand that you are pregnant and that is affecting your looks. Don't you worry, because you won't be pregnant forever! Even if you do have the baby and stay like that we will still be your friends. We love you for who you are! Yes, Jon will leave you, but he was going to do that anyway."

"Yeah, he's such a bastard!"

"He is? Well, okay, he's a bastard."

Dany smiled, "You're such a good friend to me."

Tyrion grinned, it was the first time anyone had told him that. He'd have to tell Shae… he would be very pleased and they could have good sex that night.


	60. Of faith

Dany awakened from her nap when she heard the key in the lock. Drowsily, she opened her eyes in time to see Jon and his parents come in to the apartment.

"Hey, did we wake you?" he asked.

Dany shrugged, "I was just dozing."

"Poor baby, she needs her rest," Aunt Cat smiled, sitting down on the couch, "But you need to eat dinner soon, anyway. Ned and I want to take you two out in celebration."

"Celebration?"

"I'm once again a vehicle owner," Jon explained, sitting down beside his aunt, "How was work?"

"Fine," Dany yawned, "How long did it take you to pick one?"

"Not nearly as long as it took me to negotiate the deal," Ned told her, "Those salesmen can try all they want, but I am a shrewd businessman!"

Dany smiled at her father-in-law, "You showed them, huh?"

"You'd better believe it!"

She pushed the foot rest down so she was in an upright position and began her struggle to stand up, "Let me just use the restroom and we can go."

"That's fine," Aunt Cat told her.

Dany went to the bathroom and washed her face. Deciding to at least make an effort, she ran a brush through her hair and applied some more make-up than her usual- as of late- lip gloss and mascara. Surprisingly, when she looked back at her reflection, Dany felt a lot better. Almost… pretty… well, as pretty as one could get when they were as pregnant as she was.

Walking back out of the bathroom, Aunt Cat saw her and clapped her hands together, "You look gorgeous, Honey. Not that you're not always beautiful… but you look happier now."

"I feel better," Dany admitted, noticing that Jon didn't say anything.

"I'm sure you do. I should have tried to get us to a salon during this visit! You could really use a nice massage and a facial. If I make you an appointment for next week, will you go?"

Dany shook her head, "Don't bother, I'm fine."

"Jon your wife is positively frustrating at times," she sighed as she opened the door to the apartment and excitedly led Dany to the garage, "We spoiled him a bit, but I'm in such a giving mood… we got every feature Jon wanted and then some."

Walking into the garage, Dany found the biggest truck she had ever seen. There was no way she'd be able to climb into it… not before she gave birth. Jon walked past her and grinned, running his hand along the side of it proudly. She instantly saw him proudly picking up a date and driving all around with her in this… monstrosity. It wasn't a family car… and he didn't need a family car when he'd be divorcing her in a matter of months.

"Hey, come look," Jon said, pulling her to the passenger side.

"Jon, you'd have to lift me into it so I could see anything… and I don't want you lifting me."

"No, I won't," he assured her, "See, there's a little thing for you to step on to get in."

Dany looked where he was pointing, and sure enough, there was a little built-in step on the side of the truck. Jon opened the passenger door for her and she complied, climbing up and sitting on the edge of the seat.

Proudly, Jon stood beside her, "See, it's got a killer sound system and, as you can see, it's a four-door with a nice backseat too."

"Yeah," Dany replied, gazing at the backseat, wondering if he was implying that the backseat would be good for when the baby came.

"Uh… because then I can bring my friends places too," Jon added. He'd wanted to say it was for the baby, but she was so wishy-washy lately that he feared her reaction.

"It's great, Jon," she told him, disappointed. It actually wasn't that bad. Even if she'd never want to drive something so huge, it was pretty nice on the inside and she could get used to climbing up into it. Ygritte, or a girl like her, would love it.

Dany waddled into the living room and sat on the couch, "I'm tired. God, all I did was put my shoes on and I'm tired!"

"Well, it must be… never mind," Jon replied, thinking better of telling her he understood it would be hard to put shoes on when you can't see your feet. From his spot in the recliner, though, he noticed something else, "Um, Dany… why do you have one pink shoe and one white one?"

"I do?" she asked, trying unsuccessfully to look down at her feet. She had several pairs of canvas shoes in different colors that felt the same. Boy, did she feel like an idiot. Frowning at Jon, she said, "I really don't need any comments."

"I promise I have none," he assured her, standing, "Now, did you want to wear white or pink?"

"White," she replied quietly.

Jon nodded and went into Dany's room, only to emerge a moment later with the white sneaker's mate. He knelt in front of Dany and removed the pink shoe before sliding her foot into the white one and tying the laces. Looking up at her and smiled, "Done."

Dany rewarded him with a small smile, as she was touched by his gesture, "Thank you."

"Anytime."

From the doorway, Aunt Cat and Ned stood with their arms around each other, sharing warm smiles, knowing they could leave on their flight that day with their minds at ease. Jon had made some mistakes, but everything would work out. They had faith in love. It would come through and their son would be happy with Dany.

"You drank all the milk!"

"What?" Jon asked groggily, finding an irate-looking Dany standing next to his bed.

"My milk! You know I love my cereal, but now I can't have it because you drank all the milk!"

"I… I'm sorry," he stumbled over his words as he sat up in bed, glancing at the clock and seeing it was half past seven, "I'll go buy you more."

"Oh, you'll go buy me more? Like, after you get out of bed and shower and get dressed and probably have your own breakfast," Dany shouted before breaking down into tears, "Well, I'm hungry now!"

"I'm sorry, Dany, I really didn't mean to. Let me just go put some clothes on… and maybe brush my teeth… I'll have your milk for you in… twenty minutes!"

"Don't bother, I know you hate me!"

"No, I don't hate you at all," Jon assured her, getting out of bed and trying to comfort the distraught girl with a hug.

Dany shrugged out of his embrace and walked away, "I don't want to hear it."

As the door slammed behind her, Jon sighed, wondering how he was supposed to make it through these mood swings until Dany gave birth…. just six more days until her due date… not that it meant she'd give birth on that day.

"Poor Jon," Missandei laughed, "I can't believe you went off on him because of milk."

Dany rubbed her face with her hands, "I know… I feel like an idiot, but it seemed like such a big deal at the time."

"I guess you're looking forward to having this kid?"

She shrugged, "A part of me can't wait. I want to get to see her and hold her and put her in all those cute little dresses… but on the other hand… I'm dreading it. I'm scared of giving birth. I'm scared something bad will happen. And… I'm also depressed because I've always been able to say Jon and I won't get divorced until a few months after I have the baby… but once I have the baby… all that comes next is divorce."

"You definitely do not want a divorce," Grey concluded, seeing the way her eyes filled with tears and looking at Missandei with knowing eyes.

Dany shook her head, "Not even a little… despite all that Jon's said that hurt me and the fact that I could throttle him half the time… I don't want him to leave too."

"Tell him, Dany, let him know how you feel," she urged her.

"No, I'm not going to do that," she insisted, "I can't, Missandei… if I tell him how I feel, he has so much power over me. He can hurt me so much."

"And he hasn't hurt you already, even though he has no idea you love him? Your heart isn't going to be broken come January when it's time to get divorced?" Missandei reasoned, "You can't help falling in love, Dany…. and pretending you aren't, won't stop the pain."

Dany looked down, "I don't want to fall in love anymore. I'm tired of getting hurt."

"We know you are, Dany, but don't you see that the only way you can possibly not get hurt is to tell Jon how you feel and give him a chance to make you happy?"


	61. Chapter 61

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Someone's in going into labor! And dram ensues! 
> 
> Extra long chapter too!

Dany hummed cheerfully as she poured the cheese and mushrooms over the eggs and flipped one side over. Jon would be coming out of his room at any moment and she had prepared his favorite breakfast for him on his special day. She was in a great mood after deciding to take Missandei’s and Grey's words to heart. What did she have to lose by telling Jon the truth? He already had her heart and she knew he loved her too. So… she was going to tell him over dinner that night. She had the day off work and planned to spend it preparing a delicious dinner so that everything would be perfect.

As if on cue, Jon's bedroom door opened and he gingerly exited his haven of peace in a now chaotic household, courtesy of Dany's hormones. He never knew what to expect from her, she went from happy to depressed to furious so often.

"Happy Birthday!" Dany grinned at him.

A smile spread on Jon's face as he was pleased that she'd remembered. Then again, it would have been impossible for her not to, the way Aunt Cat lamented that she had to leave just before his birthday and Dany's due date because Robb and Talisa were going on a cruise and needed someone to watch the kids.

"Thank you," he said quietly, then noticed the aroma in the air, "You didn't make me breakfast, did you?"

Dany nodded as she scooped the omelette out and put it on a plate before piling two slices of toast next to it as well, "Of course I did. Go sit at the table and I will bring it to you."

"I don't want you to wait on me," Jon said, "You should be sitting down."

"I don't feel like sitting down, so go," she ordered.

He complied, not wishing to push her into getting angry or crying or anything and sat down at the dining room table. She'd already set out silverware and a glass as well as a pitcher of orange juice and the butter. He poured himself a glass of juice and sipped it until Dany brought his food out a moment later.

"Here we go. Do you need anything else?"

Jon shook his head and smiled up at her, "Thank you so much, this was very sweet of you."

"It's no big deal," she assured him as she moved over to the ironing board where she had Jon's camouflage suits hanging, "I hope you don't mind, but I ironed these uniforms. You just had them folded in your laundry basket, so I figured you would have had to do them anyway."

"Dany, did you sleep last night?" he asked.

She shook her head, "I wasn't tired… I just have this need to clean. I wanted to vacuum, but I figured it would wake you up, so I did a bunch of ironing and cleaned the kitchen and my bedroom before it was time to make you breakfast."

"Don't overdo it, Dany, you need your rest."

"I could get in bed, but I wouldn't sleep… I'd just get antsy."

Jon frowned, wondering what was up with her. Still… she seemed to be feeling better than normal, certainly more energetic… so he probably needn't be concerned.

"Hey there Birthday Boy," Edd greeted his friend as he walked up to him in the hallway of the Night's Watch.

Jon looked at his friend in surprise, since Edd had been pretty irked at him since he'd found out what had happened on the second date with Ygritte. "Hey, how's it going?"

"Great… I'm thinking a night of celebration is in order."

He wanted to say no, since he'd really wanted to take Dany out to dinner, just the two of them, but he supposed he really needed to get on with his life. Slowly, he nodded his head, "What did you have in mind?"

"All right," Edd grinned, "How about a bunch of us go to a bar? We can have a nutritious barbeque wing dinner, beer and play pool all night."

"Who is we?" Jon asked. Just because he was going out didn't mean he wanted to spend the evening with Ygritte.

"A bunch of us guys," Edd replied.

"Cool… I'm in," he agreed.

"Great, how does six o'clock sound?"

"Seven sounds better," Jon answered, "I don't get off until five-thirty and I will need to go home to shower and get a change of clothes.

"I'm off at two, how about I go pick up your clothes for you so you can get ready up in Castle Black?" Edd offered.

Jon shrugged, "Yeah, that'll work."

Dany put the finishing touches of icing on Jon's birthday cake, satisfied that the night would be a success…. food-wise, anyway. The cake looked perfect and in a few hours the lasagna would be done baking in the oven. All she really had left to do was try and pull herself together.

She'd covered the cake and was heading to her bedroom to decide on an outfit when there was a knock at the door. Dany frowned and wondered who it could be as she went to answer it. When she found Edd on the other side of the threshold, she was surprised to say the least.

"Hi Edd… um… Jon's not here, he's working. I figured you'd know that," she told him, then her eyes widened, "Oh no, nothing happened, right?"

Edd shook his head and faked a smile, "Jon's fine, I'm just picking up some clothes for him."

"Oh, okay," she replied, stepping out of the way so he could enter the apartment.

As soon as he walked in, Edd couldn't help but comment, "Something smells really good."

"It's Jon's lasagna and birthday cake," Dany smiled, "I wanted him to have a special dinner tonight. Why do you have to pick up clothes for him?"

"We're going out… to celebrate his birthday. That's weird, did he forget you guys had made plans?" Edd asked innocently.

Dany shook her head quickly, "No… I was going to surprise him. He hadn't mentioned he was going out."

"Well, we just decided today… I mean it's not like you're really his wife. He probably didn't expect you to want to spend his birthday with him."

"Yeah, you're right," she agreed, trying to hide her disappointment, "He can just have the food… tomorrow or something. It's no big deal."

Edd smiled, for real this time, "That's cool."

He left her alone so that he could go grab Jon's clothes. Dany bit her lip and focused on not crying. So much for all her plans….

It was six o'clock when Dany felt the pain for the first time. It was strange, not unlike the cramps she used to get during her period, but she felt it more in her back. Still, it passed relatively quickly and she dismissed it as one of those lovely pregnancy 'perks'.

Around six-thirty, Dany felt the pain again, but since it was a fleeting discomfort, she wrote it off as nothing and continued scrubbing the kitchen floor. She had already cleaned it at five that morning, but she felt a compulsion to do it again.

When Missandei called twenty minutes later when she felt it again and mentioned it to her friend, who was immediately concerned.

"What kind of pain?"

"I don't know… like a cramp. It hurts but not for that long," Dany explained.

"Gods, you're having contractions!"

"No, I'm not, it must just be Braxton-Hicks," she replied confidently, "If it was labor… I'd know. It would be different."

"Different how?" Missandei asked.

"I would just know. I'd be like 'whoa, labor', but I'm not… it would just be… bigger."

Missandei wasn't completely convinced, "I'm coming over."

Dany would have protested, but company sounded nice so she agreed. Missandei set a record and made it in ten minutes with a stopwatch and pad of paper in hand, insisting she would time Dany's not-contractions.

By eight o'clock, the pains were getting a lot stronger and occurring less than ten minutes apart. Missandei was growing more and more worried and even Dany started to take them seriously.

"Maybe we should go to the hospital," the dark head suggested.

Dany shook her head, "Even if it is labor, we shouldn't go until they are five minutes apart. That's what they told us in birthing class."

"Well, we can't just sit here!"

"Do you want some ice cream?" she asked her friend, "I'd offer you cake too, but I figure Jon should get the first piece since it's his."

"Oh, forget him, he doesn't deserve it," Missandei retorted, having heard about what had happened with Edd and was not very pleased with Jon at the moment. She immediately   
remembered the situation and asked, "How about we call your uncle? I'd just feel better if he came over."

Dany shook her head, "Aemon is in Dorn. We could call but he'd worry and it would be hard for him… being so far away."

Missandei sighed, "Okay, we'll call Jon."

"Jon is an expert on childbirth?"

"No, Jon is your coach. Even if you aren't ready to leave, he should get home because your contractions are getting closer together and you will be five minutes apart before you know it," Missandei explained, "Oh no, did you pack a bag? You need a bag!"

Dany nodded calmly, "I packed one a long time ago. It's on the floor of my closet in my bedroom."

"Good, I'll go get it… will you please call Jon?"

She complied, picking up the phone and dialing Jon's cell number, since she hadn't thought to ask Edd where they were going. She'd been a little worried that girls were involved and then she didn't want to know.

There was no answer, which Dany found strange, but didn't worry too much about it. Jon couldn't be far from his phone so he'd soon see on his caller ID that he'd missed her call. Besides, she was overcome with yet another pain, this one stronger than the others.

Edd quickly deleted the call from Dany on Jon's phone. Thank God Jon had gone to the bathroom just then and had left the phone on the table… all alone with him. It figured that girl would try to ruin Jon's night! As his best friend, Edd decided not to let her and turned off the phone, tucking it into his pocket. Hopefully his friend wouldn't notice it's absence… at least for a few hours.

"We're here Dany, don't worry," Grey announced as he and Missandei walked through the door into Dany's hospital room.

It was half past nine and Missandei had insisted on taking her friend to the hospital despite their inability to contact Jon. Dany's contractions had gotten down to six minutes apart forty-five minutes earlier, and it seemed to risky to wait any longer. The both of them had called him numerous times and left messages on his voice mail, but had yet to get a response.

"I don't believe this, how could he be so irresponsible?" Jorah ranted as he paced alongside the bed. Missandei had insisted on calling him an hour earlier to give him a heads up so he'd ended up meeting them at the hospital…. And he hadn't taken the news of Jon's absence well.

"What's he talking about?" Grey asked.

"Jon is nowhere to be found," Missandei explained, "He went out with his friends, but we don't know where and he's not answering his cell phone."

"You've got to be kidding, that doesn't sound like Jon," Grey commented, picking up the phone next to Dany's bed, "Let me try?"

Dany told him as another contraction hit her, "Although, I don't know why you think you can dial a phone better than us!"

Grey made a face at her agitation and listened to the ringing on the other end, praying Jon would pick up. Instead, he got the voice mail. Hanging the phone up, he announced, "Don't worry, Dany, I'll find him."

Grey lucked out and found Jon at the third bar he tried. Despite Drangonstone being a big city and having a relatively high number of bars, time was of the essence. It was ten o'clock before he walked into a bar and saw Jon laughing with his friends at a table.

He rushed over to him and shouted, "Jon!"

Jon looked up, surprised to see the boy and smiled, "Hey Grey, how's it going?"

"How's it going?" Grey repeated, "What's wrong with you?"

"Huh?"

"Dany is in labor and you're sitting here, drinking!"

"What?" Jon exclaimed, sitting up straighter as everyone else at the table looked at Grey in shock, "Why didn't she call me?"

"She did! Many times! In fact, we all called you, but all we got was your voice mail," Grey said.

Confused, Jon searched his pockets for his phone, trying to find it. Edd sheepishly pulled the phone out of his own pocket and handed it to his friend.

Jon glared at him as he took the phone, but knew he couldn't get into it right then. He had more important things to do.

Together, Grey and Jon rushed out of the bar to Grey's car. There was a tense silence in the car for a few moments until Grey just had to vent a bit.

"I can't believe you left her alone this far into her pregnancy."

Jon gave him an incredulous look, "You don't mean I was supposed to sit home twenty-four hours a day just in case Dany went into labor."

Grey sighed, "I don't know, I'm just really pissed right now. You're the one who agreed to be Dany's coach and she's at the hospital, scared and alone. Okay, not alone… Jorah and Missandei are there… but you're the one she needs."

"I know," Jon said, "I'm far from happy about this, but you gotta know that I didn't know you guys were calling. How far apart are her contractions?"

Grey shrugged, "I have no idea… I just know they called me before nine when they were on the way to the hospital."

"Shit," Jon shook his head. He was going to kill Edd.

"You're doing great, Dany, I'm so proud of you," Jorah smiled as he squeezed the girl's hand. Missandei had set off on a mission to get Dany ice chips, so the two of them were left alone.

Dany chuckled, "How do you know? You've never done this before either."

He nodded, "That's true… but I have faith in you."

"I'm scared," she confessed, "It's already pretty painful and it will only get worse."

"You'll do fine, and they can give you drugs to help you deal with the pain when you're ready."

She nodded, "What if something goes wrong?"

"It won't," Jorah assured her, "You're in perfect health and you have been for this entire pregnancy."

"Look who I have," Grey announced, walking in the room with a panicked Jon in tow.

"Jon!" Dany gasped, surprised to see him.

Jon was at her side in an instant, "God, Dany, I am so sorry…. it's not something we should get into right now, but I didn't get your calls."

Jorah looked to Grey for confirmation and received a nod from the boy. Still… he wasn't ready to completely forgive Jon. Especially the way Dany was looking at him. Like any father, Jorah worried about Dany getting hurt.


	62. Of wise plans

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Do I hear drama?!

Dany's labor seemed to slow down. She wasn't dilating very much, and her contractions seemed to stick to being three minutes apart. However, her water had broken not too long after Jon had arrived, so there was no doubt that their daughter was coming soon.

"How you doing?" Jon asked, then smiled at the dirty look Dany shot him, "Sorry, stupid question."

"I half want to get this over with, but then I also just want to go home now. Dany sighed, "I really hate the pain."

"Oh, I think childbirth is tough,” he assured her, "And if it helps, I think you're doing better than Talisa did."

She grinned up at him, "You're just saying that."

"Perhaps," Jon shrugged, "Do you really mind?"

Dany shook her head and tried to relax. At least Jon was by her side. Even if Aemon was in the Dorn - trying to get the first flight home- she had him and that was a comfort. Her friends had all gone to the waiting room- where several of the guys from Castle Black were also milling about- after their constant worrying had begun to agitate Dany.

All of a sudden, Dany felt a sharp pain in her side and moaned loudly. Jon immediately gripped her hand, "Another contraction?"

Dany slowly shook her head and choked out, "No, this feels different… much worse."

"Are you sure it's just not stronger than the others?" he asked, growing worried.

"It feels different! Something is wrong, Jon!"

"It'll be okay, Dany, let me get a doctor, okay?"

"Don't leave me!"

"I won't, I'm just going to grab a doctor really fast," Jon promised and rushed out of the room. Luckily he spotted a doctor right away and dragged them into the room by the arm, "Something's wrong with my wife."

The doctor looked Dany over with concern, "What is it?"

"There's this pain in my side," Dany gritted out, "It's horrible."

"You're sure it's not a contraction?" the doctor asked, checking her over.

"Positive… that pain is more in my back."

The man stuck his head out the door and said something to someone in the hallway before walking back over to examine Dany. Abruptly, she began hemorrhaging and the doctor grew alarmed, "Nurse, I need help in here now, she's bleeding!"

"What?" Jon exclaimed.

"Just stay back, please, sir, so we can take care of your wife," the doctor ordered as he grabbed an electronic device and positioned it next to Dany's bed.

A nurse entered the room, "What's wrong, Mrs. Snow?"

"She was having strong pains in her side and she's started bleeding. I'm going to do an ultrasound," the doctor explained as he lifted Dany's hospital gown to bare her abdomen.

Dany and Jon were both petrified and wishing they could be next to one another, but he couldn't do anything besides stand back and watch as several doctors and nurses began working on Dany. It was the scariest, most frustrating thing that he'd ever gone through.

"Just as I thought," the doctor announced after what felt like years but had probably been closer to a few moments, "Her placenta is detached."

"What does that mean? Is she okay?" Jon asked.

The doctor shook his head, "She needs a c-section, right away."

"C-can I come with her?"

"No, you'd better wait outside," one of the nurses said, taking his arm and pulling him out of the room.

"But I want to stay with my wife!"

"I'm sorry, Sir, but you can't. This is an emergency and while we do allow fathers on the OR, in this case, we can’t." the woman said, smiling compassionately at him, "The doctors will take good care of her and your baby. We're going to give her some medication right now and she'll be unconscious. Then we'll take her into the OR just down the hall. Now you just wait right here and we'll let you know as soon as we're done, okay?"

Slowly, Jon nodded, not knowing what else he could do. A few moments later, they pushed Dany out of her room on a gurney. He moved beside the gurney to see if he could talk with Dany, but found she was unconscious, so he silently followed as they pushed Dany down the hallway to a set of double doors.

Once they started pushing her into the room, Jon was forced to stop and stare despairingly at the doors. The nurse that had talked to him earlier walked up to the doors with various medical supplies in her hands and gave him a sympathetic look.

"Didn't you have some family or friends here as well?"

Jon numbly nodded, vaguely remembering that their friends were all in the waiting room.

Intending to give him something to do, since it would take some time to perform the operation, she suggested, "Why don't you go explain to them what's going on… then you will be able to spend all your time with your wife and daughter when this is over."

"All right," Jon said quietly, deciding it was a good idea. If he didn't bring the gang up to speed, they'd probably be pretty mad.

The walk back to the waiting room was the longest of his life as Jon tried to figure out how to explain what was happening when his mind was so muddled. Silently, he found everyone relaxing as best they could in the waiting room.

Upon seeing him, Grey smiled, "So, do we have a baby?"

Tormund grinned and nodded, "Yeah, is it time to start passing out cigars?"

However, they immediately noticed the solemn look on his face and knew that probably wasn't the case.

Distressed, Jorah stood up and walked over to the younger man, "What's wrong?"

"Uh… Dany's… her… placenta detached and… she started bleeding," Jon explained, "They… they have to give her a c-section… and they won't let me come in with her."

"Oh God," Missandei gasped, tears filling her eyes, "This doesn't sound good!"

"Does this mean she can die?" Pyp asked, oblivious to the fact that it probably wasn't the best question to ask right then.

"I don't know… why won't they let me go in with her? I don't understand, they usually let the husband be there for a c-section, but they said it was an emergency. " Jon replied.

"Maybe they just didn't want it to be crowned," Jorah said quietly, trying to remain calm as he found himself facing his greatest fear ... losing Dany.

"How long is this supposed to take?" Grey asked.

Jon shrugged, "I really have no idea. I'm, uh… gonna go back now so that I can find out as soon as possible. I just wanted to let you guys know."

Everyone nodded slowly, lost in their own thoughts and worries as Jon turned and headed back to wait outside the operating room. A few moments later, Grey decided he couldn't just sit and wait any longer. He'd already forgiven Jon for not being the one to take Dany to the hospital… and it was clear to anyone who glanced at him that the soldier needed some company during this torturous wait.

He quickly excused himself and followed the way Jon had gone. He found the other man sitting on a couch in the hallway near a set of double doors that Grey assumed led to the room Dany was in. Awkwardly, he stood a few feet away as Jon rocked slightly back and forth.

"Old Gods and New Gods, please, let her live, let her survive this... I love her too much to lose her... and she doesn't even know... give me the chance to show her how much she means to me!" Jon pleaded.

Grey cleared his throat, deciding to make his presence known.

Jon looked up, surprised to see him and asked, "What are you doing here? Did something happen? I've been right here since I told you guys so I don't see why they wouldn't tell me if-"

"No news yet," Grey interrupted, sitting down on the other end of the couch.

"Oh," he replied, looking down, "She'll be okay."

"Will she?" the man asked, "I mean… even if she comes through this surgery just fine, I don't think she's truly going to be okay until you decide what you want."

"Grey-" Jon began, but trailed off, shaking his head and staring at the double doors, willing them to open with someone bearing good news.

"I know you love her. Anybody with eyes can see that, but are you willing to be there for her? To love her every day, no matter how hard it gets? Because she deserves that, Jon. She deserves something!"

"Loving Dany is the easiest, most natural thing in the world, to me... but the scariest too."

"I know," Grey sighed and leaned back, stretching his tense muscles, "Trust me, after what Dany's been through, it's ten times harder for her... but I think she'll do it for you.... so you need to decide right now if you'll do it for her... because I'd hate for you to break your promise to the Gods."

"I never would." Jon glanced at the dark haired man. "You think she'll do that for me?"

"Jon, where were you when she was falling in love with you? Were you blind?"

"What?" he asked, taken aback.

Grey shook his head and couldn't help but laugh, "I swear, you two are so damn perfect for each other… both oblivious to the feelings of the other."

Jon was quiet, absorbing that bit of information, as well as continuing to pray that Dany be okay, until the double doors did open some ten more minutes later. Both men stood as a couple nurses came out, pushing an isolette.

"What's going on?" Jon asked anxiously.

One of the nurses looked up at him, "Is that your wife in there?"

He nodded quickly, before realizing there was a baby in the isolette, "The baby?"

"She's fine, by all indications," the other nurse said, giving him a smile, "We have to run the standard tests, but she appears to be perfectly healthy."

"Good," Jon exhaled, "Are they bringing Dany out now?"

Averting his eyes, the first nurse shook her head, "They still have to work on her… sew her up and stuff."

"Oh, okay," he said, disappointed. He could tell by their body language that just because the baby was out and fine, it didn't mean Dany was out of the woods yet.

"Why don't you come with us to the nursery?" the second nurse asked, "We'll have her all ready in no time and then you can hold your daughter."

"Uh… well, I think I should wait for news on my wife."

The second nurse exchanged a look with the first and the woman nodded her head, "Come with us, it'll take a while to get her cleaned up and everything. Don't worry, they'll come to give you the news as soon as they have her out of the OR."

Reluctantly, Jon nodded, "You're sure they'll know where to find me?"

"Absolutely," the second nurse said, relieved that he agreed to come. It was standard in situations like this to get the father to the nursery so he could bond with a child. Not only did it get his mind off things… but when they had to deliver bad news, it was always best if the father had their child in his arms. It would calm him… and he'd look down and see the baby and know that no matter how distraught he was, he needed to keep it together for the sake of the child.

And from what they had seen in the operating room… it seemed like a wise plan.


	63. Of necessary talks

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The talk! Finally!

As soon as Grey walked back into the waiting room, he was bombarded by questions from everyone. Hushing them all, he announced, "They've got the baby out. They just took her down to the nursery… Jon went with her. They say she looks like she's in perfect health, though." 

"That's great," Tormund sighed, "And how about Dany?" 

"They're still working on her," Grey answered quietly, not being able to hide his own fear. He'd seen the look on those nurses faces. They seemed far from sure that Dany would be fine. 

Everyone was quiet again, but most were a bit more optimistic since the baby was okay… it was unfathomable that Dany could really die. After twenty minutes, though, Jorah couldn't take it any longer. 

"I'm going to go wait outside the operating room. I'll let you all know when there is news." 

"I'll go with you," Grey offered, "I know the way." 

"I'll come too, then," Tormund said, giving Grey a nod.

He nodded his assent, as the three nervously walked back to the operating room and sat on the couch. They were all silent for a while, until Jorah shook his head and said, "I cannot believe this is happening… I never would have thought something like childbirth could…." 

"Hey, she'll be fine, Jorah," Missandei comforted the older man, "Dany is far too excited about this baby to never even meet her. Besides, she swore to me that she was going to do whatever it took to make sure her daughter didn't grow up motherless." 

Jorah gave him a small grateful smile, "I'm trying to believe that…. but if she doesn't, so help me I will kill Drogo. I know it takes two, but Dany's the one who has suffered…" 

"You won't get any argument from us," Grey replied. 

A few moments later, a group of doctors and nurses emerged from the OR with a gurney in tow. The three of them were on their feet in an instant, moving to stand beside the gurney to see Dany. She was extremely pale and unconscious… but alive. 

"How is she?" Jorah asked one of the doctors. 

"Are any of you family?" 

"He's her brother," Grey answered quickly, pointing at Jorah. 

Since he appeared to be about the right age and certainly had a 'worried brother' look, the doctor said, "So far, so good. We're taking her to ICU for at least the night, but I'm optimistic that she'll be fine." 

The three of them sighed in relief and continued to follow. Once they reached an elevator, a doctor put his hand on Jorah' arm, "This is where you all get off. We'll take her up to ICU and get her all settled… then she can have visitors. Oh, but family only. Sorry, hospital policy." 

Jorah nodded quickly, just happy to know Dany had indeed made it through childbirth. 

"Here we go, are you ready to meet your daughter?" yet another nurse asked as she walked into the room with a little bundle in a pink blanket in her arms.  
Jon nodded eagerly from the rocking chair they'd had him sit in after he'd 'suited up' in a paper gown over his street clothes. 

The nurse gently put the baby in his arms, "Here's Daddy, Precious…. Have you picked a name yet, Mr. Snow?" 

Jon shook his head, gazing down in amazement at the baby in his arms, "Her mother wanted to wait until she got to see her before she decided for sure." 

"Okay," the nurse said, patting Jon's shoulder, "I'll leave you two to get acquainted." 

After she left them alone, Jon smiled down at the baby. She was absolutely beautiful. Her head had soft dark hair, which he she must have gotten from Drogo, but otherwise… she was Dany. She was gazing up at him drowsily and he could see she had her mother's blue eyes… as well as all her other features…. And Jon instantly fell in love with his baby. 

"Hi there, Sweetheart. I'm Daddy… and I certainly hope I get to be around. You see, things aren't exactly simple between your mommy and I. But I do love her more than anything… and she just might love me too. So hopefully I can grovel enough that I'll get to be your daddy for good. Won't that be wonderful? I think so…. do you suppose maybe you could help me get your mom to give me a second chance? Unfortunately, I wasn't very nice to your mommy lately… but I think if I have you on my side, she'll forgive me. I honestly don't know how anyone could look at you and say no," Jon said between tears.

He spent the next twenty minutes adoring their daughter, as well as praying with all his might that Gods wouldn't take her from him, and even more importantly, from this tiny baby in his arms. Dany had done so much for their child already… it wouldn't be fair that she never got to hold her… and despite his mistakes, hadn't he done enough good things to earn a chance to make things right? 

"Mr. Snow," a doctor softly said, entering the room and pulling a stool out so he could face Jon. 

Jon recognized him as the doctor he'd pulled out of the hallway when Dany had first started having pains. It had felt like ages ago, but a glance at the clock on the wall proved it had actually only been about an hour. Gulping, he asked, "Do you have news about Dany?" 

The doctor nodded, "Uh, first let me tell you my name is Dr. Luwin. If you have any questions later, don't hesitate to ask… now, about your wife. Daenerys bled quite a bit during the procedure. We had to give her a unit of blood, but we did stabilize her. She's going to spend tonight in the ICU, but like I said, she's stable. We mostly want her there for observation, to make sure she doesn't start bleeding again or anything. I have no reason to believe that we won't be able to move her to a private room tomorrow. It's just a guess, but I think we'll be able to release her after three days or so." 

Jon sighed in relief, "Thank you so much, doctor, that's wonderful news!" 

The doctor smiled and nodded, "Of course, this is barring any complications… but your wife is a fighter, I can tell. I have faith that she'll be just fine."

He nodded his head firmly, "I know she will. When can I see her?" 

"They're settling her in the room right now. Give them a little while… a nurse will come get you," Dr. Luwin replied as he stood up and put the stool back. 

Jon carefully reached an arm up to shake the man's hand, extremely cautious of the baby in his arms, "Thank you again, doctor." 

Dany groggily opened her eyes and tried to figure out where she was. It didn't look like any of the rooms in her apartment, the ceiling was tiled and she could hear a repetitious beeping sound. Her vision was a bit blurred, but as she looked around, it started to clear. She felt a slight pain in her hand and lifted it, realizing she was hooked up to an IV. 

"Hey there." 

She turned her head to the other side and saw Jon was sitting in a chair beside her, a big smile on his face. 

"Jon, what's going on?" she asked, her voice gruff since her throat was so dry. 

"Want some water?" he asked. When she nodded, he picked up a cup and a pitcher from a table next to her hospital bed and poured her a cup and slipped a straw into it. Gently, he helped lift her head slightly so that she could have a few sips. When she was satisfied, he set the cup back down. 

"Something happened with the baby, didn't it? I remember… lots of pain… they made you leave," Dany recalled, her eyes filling with tears. 

"Yes, but don't worry, Dany," he said quickly, "Your placenta was detached and they had to give you an emergency c-section. You lost a lot of blood and they had to give to a transfusion, but you're going to be fine. You're in the ICU, but they think you'll be able to go to a regular room tomorrow." 

"And the baby?" Dany asked, since that was all she was really worried about. 

He beamed at her, "Absolutely perfect." 

"Really?" 

"Yeah, she is doing great. They say she couldn't be healthier." 

Dany sighed, "That's so good… I don't know what I'd do if she wasn't. She was big enough and everything?" 

"Yes… eight pounds, five ounces, 10 fingers and 10 toes" he informed her, "And she is so beautiful. They let me hold her." 

She grinned, "Can I see her?" 

"I'm sorry," he shook his head, "They want you to rest. Once they move you, they'll let you see her." 

"Oh God, I want to see her so much." 

"I know you do, Dany, I know…" Jon comforted her, tenderly kissing her forehead. 

Dany closed her eyes, enjoying the feel of it and not allowing herself to wonder why he was acting so…. husband-like. 

Jon pulled back and looked at her face, trying to get a read on whether or not this was a good time to tell her how he felt. She didn't seem disgusted by his affection… and he had learned that he needed to tell her how he felt because you never knew if you'd have another chance. 

"Can we talk for a minute?" he asked. She nodded her head slowly, so he continued, "Dany… I'm hopelessly in love with you. I have always been. I can't help myself…. You can tell me you don’t love me. You can talk to Drogo every night on the phone… I can go out with other girls… but I love you and I can't bear the thought of spending a single day without you." 

Dany smiled, her eyes filling with tears once again, but these were tears of happiness, not fear. "I love you too. I have for… I don't know how long, but I was scared." 

"I know you were… and I'm scared too… but I still want to risk it. I want you to be my wife… my real wife. I don't want to get divorced. I want to be the father of our baby…" 

"I think I could deal with that," she teased. 

"Yeah?" 

Dany nodded, "I'm pretty sure that would make me the happiest woman in the world." 

Jon knew she wasn't exactly in the best shape, health-wise. After all, she was hooked up to a heart monitor…. But he still knew he had to kiss her. 

So he did, languidly dipping his head down and softly pressing his lips against hers. Dany reciprocated, feeling like she was in heaven as they shared an almost chaste kiss…. Yet it was still one of the most passionate she had ever experienced. 

Dimly, they heard someone clear their throat behind them. That's when Jon remembered that Jorah had gone to the restroom… for just a moment. 

Pulling back, he smiled sheepishly at the man, "She woke up."  
"I see that," Jorah replied, not being able to help but grin when he saw the girl he loved like a daughter was indeed awake, "How are you feeling?" 

"Like my stomach was just ripped open," Dany joked. 

Jorah sat down in a chair on the other side of her bed, "You have no idea how happy I am to see you." 

She smiled, reaching her hand towards him. He took it and allowed her to give him an affectionate squeeze. "I love you." 

Taken aback by her comment, Jorah' eyes widened before he grinned once again, "I love you too, Dany." 

"Gods, I thought I was something special… I didn't realize Dany was going to start saying that to every guy," Jon teased. 

Dany mock-glared at him, "Shut up." 

"Sorry, I just get so jealous," he winked at her. 

She rolled her eyes, then thought of something, "What time is it?" 

"Around one o'clock in the morning," Jorah answered. 

"What time was the baby born?" 

"I'm not sure," Jon replied, "I didn't think to ask… but they took you in for the c-section just after eleven… and they brought her out around eleven-thirty… so sometime between then." 

Dany smiled brightly, "So she was born on your birthday?" 

"Yeah," he said slowly, realizing she was right. He'd completely forgotten about his own birthday, "That's pretty cool, isn't it?" 

"Very," Dany agreed, "By the way, you'll find a lasagna in the refrigerator and a cake on the counter when you go home." 

Jon raised an eyebrow, "Really? Boy, you were feeling super productive all day… and you made my favorite meal!" 

"Well… I made it for your birthday," she admitted, knowing he'd be able to tell as soon as he saw the cake. 

"You did? And I never even came home. You went to all that trouble and I just went out with my friends. Gods, I'm sorry Dany." 

"Don't be, it's okay… it's not like I had told you I was doing it and you had flaked out on me. I don't mind. Now at least I know you have something to eat at home." 

"I don't want you worrying about me. Worry about getting better so you can see your daughter," Jon insisted. 

As the two of them continued to talk, Jorah watched on happily. Dany was alive and she would be fine, he was sure of it. What's more… she may have finally found happiness with Jon.


	64. Of names

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As I'm just finishing the last couple of chapters, I'm so sad to see it ending. Despite not being everyone's cup of tea (as the reviewers showed time and time again), I'm really proud of how this story turned out. 
> 
> I might start writing a new story after this, but it'll be without the slow burn (but I'll see how this will turn up). 
> 
> Alas, another fluff chapter, which is just what this story will be from now on.

Jon proudly held the baby up for all the guys from Castle Black that had arrived bright and early that morning so that they could see her. They were appropriately enthused, grinning and poking each other as they looked at the sleeping baby girl. 

"Oh, she is so beautiful," Missandei gushed after Jon had set the baby back in her crib and pulled off his paper hospital gown before walking back into the hallway. 

"Isn't she perfect in every way?" he grinned. 

Sam patted him on the back, "She is…” 

On the other side of him, Tormund chuckled, "You would know. All I can say is that I am glad she got her looks from Dany, otherwise she'd be one funk looking baby!" 

"Oh, shut up," Jon replied. They had no idea how happy he was that the baby looked like Dany. He knew that every time he looked at his little girl he’d see her mom, the woman he loved and he couldn’t expect no less. 

"So, when do we get to see our girl?" Sam asked. 

"I don't think they'll move her out of the ICU for a few hours, and only family is allowed in there," Jon informed him, "You guys don't have to stick around… you can go home and I'll call when she's allowed to see people." 

"You promise? We really want to see her." 

Jon rolled his eyes, "I promise! Now… I need to go visit my wife." 

"Fine," Tormund sighed, then asked the other guys as Jon retreated, "Wanna take bets on how long it takes her to get pregnant again?" 

"I'm so proud of you, Sweetling," Aemon said, smiling down at her niece. 

"Why? I really didn't do anything. I didn't even get to start pushing… they took the baby out for me." 

"Well, I doubt a cesarean is that easy. It's at the very least painful. But still… you brought this gorgeous little girl into the world… and you've got her clothes and a home and furniture… everything she could need." 

Dany shrugged, "To be fair, a lot of her clothes and toys and other stuff came from you and Jon's aunt and my friends." 

"Stop arguing with me, Daenerys!" 

She laughed at her uncle and nodded, "Fine… I don't feel like arguing… I feel like seeing my daughter! When are they going to let me out of here?!" 

"The doctor said they'd move you this afternoon, remember? It's just a few hours… I know you're antsy, but you can wait." 

"Easy for you to say, you got to see her… and hold her! It's not fair… you and Jon and Jorah have all held the baby… but I am her mother and I haven't. Even Missandei and everyone gets to go look at her right now… not me." 

"I think I can fix that." 

Both turned and found a grinning Jon in the doorway, holding a polaroid picture in his hand. Missandei had stopped him in the hallway after he'd walked away from his friends and handed him the picture that she'd taken of him holding the baby. 

"What's that?" Dany asked. 

Jon walked over to her and handed over the picture, "It's me, holding the baby for everyone in the nursery." 

Dany's face brightened as she gaped at the sight of their daughter. Her own daughter… more adorable than she had even dreamed. 

"Oh my God, I… that's my daughter… I have a daughter!" 

"Yes, you do, Sweetling," Aemon said, stroking her hair. 

Dany looked up at Jon lovingly, "Thank you. We have a daughter." 

"I know. And the credit really goes to Missandei. She took the picture and gave it to me." 

"I'll have to thank her then." 

"So… now you've seen her, will you name the poor child? It's so sad seeing 'Baby Girl Snow' instead of a real name," Aemon lamented. 

Dany shook her head firmly, "I have to see her in person, hold her, smell her… then I'll know." 

Her uncle sighed and looked at Jon, "When did she go nuts?" 

Jon shrugged and laughed, "I think insanity is cute on her." 

*

"Dany told me about your talk last night," Aemon told Jon as they waited outside the room they were moving Dany into. 

Jon looked at the older man, his expression serious. He had no idea how the man felt about the idea of him being with his niece… as more than a friend. There was the incident when he had been completely out of line with Dany and he'd wanted her to leave…. So he didn't hold much hope for him being enthusiastic about it. 

"So you know that I don't want to divorce her. I want to be her real husband and the baby's father," he replied. 

The man nodded and gave him a small smile, "Don't look like you're afraid I'm about to eviscerate you." 

"Sorry, it's just… Dany and I have had our problems in the past and I wouldn't blame you for thinking I don't deserve her. I kind of doubt I deserve her… but I love her… and I'd be a fool to let her go when she wants to be with me." 

"One could say that," Aemon replied. 

"I've hurt Dany in the past, I know that… every time I think about it… I hate myself for it. I know that I never want to do it again," Jon told her, "I'm going to prove to her and you… everyone… that she won't regret her decision to be with me." 

"I have a feeling you will," he smiled, "I can't honestly say I was happy with you the other day, what uncle would be happy with the man who was hurting her niece? Still… I can't help but feel there is something intrinsically good about you. You're human and you make mistakes… but I am impressed by how you handle the effects of those mistakes. Besides, Dany seemed happier than I had seen her in a very long time when she told me. Keep making her happy and I'll be your biggest fan." 

He grinned, relieved that he wouldn't have to deal with an uncle that hated him, "Thank you." 

"Mr. Snow?" 

They both turned and saw a nurse standing in the doorway of Dany's room. She smiled at them and said, "Your wife can have visitors now… but make sure she gets her rest." 

"You've got it," he promised as he moved into Dany's room. 

Dany looked much happier and more comfortable in the room, mostly because after a long night and morning in the ICU, she was finally going to be able to hold her daughter and get visits from the rest of her friends. 

"They promised to bring the baby soon," Dany informed them as Aemon and Jon sat down in chairs on either side of the bed. 

"Good… I've got my camera ready," Aemon announced, holding it up.

"I look horrible!" 

"No, you don't," he assured.

Dany looked to Jon, who knew there was no right response that he could provide, just a bad one and a really wretched one. He went for bad, "You're gorgeous." 

"You're biased." 

He shrugged, grabbing Dany's bag that she had packed weeks earlier, "Why don't you get all made up, then?" 

"Ooh, good idea," Dany grinned. 

They spent the next ten minutes making small talk as Aemon did Dany's hair just like he did when she came to live with him, half braided.

All of a sudden, Jorah rushed in the room, relief obvious on his face, "Oh thank God you're all right!" 

"Is something wrong?" Jon asked. 

"I went up to Dany's room in the ICU and she wasn't there… I got terribly worried, but luckily one of the nurses informed me she had been moved," Jorah explained, catching his breath. 

"Oh, I'm sorry… I did call you to let you know, though," Aemon told him, "I left a message with Tyrion." 

"That's basically the same thing as not calling. Or the same effect, anyway," Dany smiled wryly, "Speaking of…. did you call your aunt, Jon?" 

"Yes," he sighed, "Of course, she insists that if she had been here, none of this would have happened. You would have had a normal delivery and never would have been in Intensive Care." 

"What does she have to do with Dany's placenta detaching?" Aemon asked. 

"The fates didn't approve of her absence during her granddaughter birth and made it happen," he explained, "My aunt has a flair for the drama." 

Before anyone could discuss the topic any further, a nurse came in the room with a plastic crib on wheels. Dany sat up straighter, her heart being rapidly as she realized it was finally time to see the baby. They weren't through the door before Aemon had his camera recording the scene as it unfolded.

As soon as the newborn was placed in Dany's arms, the young mother began to cry tears of joy. Despite the fact that everyone had assured her the baby was beautiful… despite the picture she had seen herself…. She couldn't believe that this perfect creature in her arms was a part of her and Jon… that she had carried this being inside of her for nearly nine months as she grew into what she was. 

Everyone watched Dany in silence as she studied the baby's face, as the infant stared back up at her, as if she just knew that this was her mother. Dany counted toes and fingers and inhaled the sweet scent that only a baby could possess. Her heart swelled and she realized she loved this baby more than she ever thought it was possible to love another human being. Every hardship she'd encountered, every ounce of pain she had felt since she'd gotten pregnant… it was worth it. 

This baby was worth it. 

When the child began to fuss, Dany worriedly tried to calm her. She had a big case of first time mother nerves and worried that the baby could cry for hours and she'd never know how to make her stop. When she looked up at the nurse pleadingly, the other woman quietly suggested the baby might be hungry. 

The men immediately excused themselves, with Jon not really minding the idea of seeing Dany topless… but not wanting to do it right in front of the nurse. While they sat outside, she began instructing how to breastfeed. As the baby nursed from her, Dany felt even more wonderment… she was nourishing her child. All the things she had read and learned were becoming real, whereas before they had just been things she'd read about or been told of. She was a mother now and had never felt more blissful. 

Once her daughter was full, Dany burped her and the infant fell asleep. The nurse left the two of them alone to bond. Dany was content to study the baby's face. She truly was breathtaking, and deserved a name to reflect that. 

After a few minutes, Jon grew weary of sitting in the hall and staring at the wall with Jorah and peeked his head in the room, "Everything okay?" 

Dany looked up at him and smiled warmly, "Couldn't be better. Come in here, though." 

"Okay," he complied, sitting on the edge of the bed. 

"I think I picked a name." 

"Yeah? Good, Aemon can rest easy now," Jon grinned. 

Dany laughed quietly, so she wouldn't wake the baby, "What do you think of Rhaenys? Sounds like my mom’s name, but I thought as a new life, she should have a new name too." 

He was silent for a moment, pondering the name, before he slowly nodded, "I think our daughter, Rhaenys, is one very beautiful little girl. You mom would be very happy with it. But we need a second name."

“We do. I gave her the first name, do you think she needs a middle name, daddy?” Dany asked. 

“Don’t get me wrong, I love when you call me daddy, but I can’t wait to hear Rhaenys saying that to me.”

“You’re already whipped and she’s been born for less than 48 hours.”

“I can’t help it, she looks just like another woman I love and I am completely whipped by her too,” Jon winked and Dany and got a kiss out of it. 

“You are so silly. But I love you. ” Dany said.

“And I love you two”. 

“You know, something just occurred to me. What about Lyanna for her middle name? You know, for your mom?” 

Jon had tears in his eyes and completed, “I don’t know how happy this makes for me. I’ll forever treasure it. Thank you. Rhaenys Lyanna Snow. I really like the way it sounds.” 

“I think it’s perfect, just like you.”

“Like you. She’s a combination of our love, she’s its embodiment and she’s ours.”


	65. Of changes in the future

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm trying to finish this up before I go on vacation with the boys next week! Let's hope I can squeeze in some (extra) time to work on it!

"Her fingers are so little," Tormund said as he had his turn holding Rhaenys. 

From his spot beside him on the couch, Sam laughed, "Of course her fingers are little! So are her hands and everything else! She is only three days old." 

Tormund ignored his friend and looked at Dany, sitting on the other side of him, "Do you think she'll end up being bigger than you since Jon is taller." 

"Probably… she started out two pounds bigger than I did," Dany smiled, thinking Rhaenys could get taller, considering her biological father. 

"Don't worry, tall chicks are cute too," Tormund comforted her. 

She couldn't help but laugh, as Sam looked at him like he had two heads. Sometimes he said the strangest things. 

Jon leaned over the back of the couch so he could whisper in Dany's ear, "Are you feeling okay? If you want to rest, I can kick the guys out." 

Dany shook her head, "I like having them here." 

"Okay," he agreed, planting a kiss on her cheek before heading to the kitchen to get another can of soda. He kind of wished she would have said she did want him to kick the guys out, as he could see she was tired and he felt like a nap himself… plus they'd barely had two minutes alone all day. 

Aemon had accompanied them home from the hospital and had enjoyed several hours as the doting grandfather. As soon as he'd left, though, a bunch of the guys from Castle Black had arrived with balloons, stuffed animals and other little gifts for the new mother and baby. If he wasn't so sure that Dany really did love being around the guys, he'd have tossed them out much sooner so that maybe the two of them could take a nap together. 

"Hey Jon?" Sam asked quickly as he came into the kitchen. 

"Yeah?" 

"I was wondering…. Like, I know you guys wouldn't want to right away, because Rhaenys is so little and we don't have all that much experience… but do you think after a while if Dany shows us how to do stuff, we could take care of her?" 

"What do you mean?" Jon asked. 

"Like… we could baby-sit. We… we really like her. It's kind of like she's our baby too… and then you and Dany can have time to yourselves," Sam explained. 

He couldn't help but smile, "I'd have to ask Dany… but I think that would work. I'm sure she'll be very touched that you guys want to babysit." 

"Yeah, can I ask her then?" Sam asked, eager to earn points with Dany. 

Jon nodded and followed Sam out of the kitchen, watching with amusement as he sat on the arm of the couch next to Dany so he could ask her what she thought of his idea. A moment later, Dany smiled up at Sam and Jon knew she'd made his day. He became aware of how lucky he was to have such great friends… not only were they good to him, but they treated his wife like a queen. 

His wife…. Jon realized it was the first time he'd thought that to himself. Before, he'd always said it for appearances… but Dany really was his wife now. He couldn't wait until that night, when they could cuddle together in bed. Even though it was far too soon for them to do anything… that would be enough to make him the happiest man on Earth. 

When there was a knock at the door at half past nine, Jon was surprised, but reluctantly got off the couch where he had just sat down. His plans to enjoy a nap with Dany that afternoon had been shot to Hell since Rhaenys had apparently enjoyed all the attention she'd received from their visitors because as soon as they'd left, she had begun screaming as loud as her little lungs would allow until Dany had finally managed to calm her down. However, as soon as the newborn was sleeping, Jon's aunt has called. Aunt Cat was positively blissful since her nephew had informed her that he and Dany had finally decided to act on their feelings, so she'd talked to the both of them for nearly an hour each before she'd let them go…. And then Rhaenys had woken up again. So…. it had been five hours, but they were finally going to get some quality time together, unless whoever was at the door was really important. 

He was surprised to find Edd on the other side of the threshold, since they hadn't said two words to each other since Jon had found out his friend was sabotaging Dany when she was in labor, but Edd was a friend he'd had for years and one he didn't want to lose if he could help it, so Jon stepped to the side and allowed the other man to enter his home. 

"Thanks," Edd said quietly, walking into the living room that was filled with balloons declaring' It's a girl!', toys, diapers and tons of other baby paraphernalia. 

Jon nodded and shut the door, walking past his friend into the room. Cracking a smile, he said, "This is the mess the guys left, can you believe it? They actually got all fascinated with the Pampers… and left them all over the place." 

"Yeah, everyone who isn't me tends to act… well, completely out of character when it comes to Dany and this kid," Edd replied, turning to face Jon, "So, now that she popped out the bastard, are you willing to leave so that we can all get back to our normal lives?" 

"Don't you dare come in my home and talk about my wife and daughter like that!" 

"What the Hell are you saying?" 

Enraged, Jon opened the door and grabbed Edd by the lapel of his jacket, dragging him outside, "What I am saying is that I love Dany and Rhaenys and I am beginning a new life with them… a life I think you have merited exclusion from!" 

With that, he shut the door and leaned back against it, trying to catch his breath and calm down. Dany walked into the room and it became evident from the look on her face that she knew something had occurred. 

"What's wrong, Jon?" 

He shook his head and caressed her cheek lovingly, "Nothing, Dany… everything is great." 

Dany gave him her 'I don't buy this for a second' look, "I heard Edd's voice." 

"He was here," Jon admitted with a sigh, "He's… he's not my friend." 

"Yes, he is. Edd has done some not so nice things, but he only did them because he was looking out for you. He just needs time to accept us." 

"I love you," he responded, before leaning over to kiss her softly. 

Dany returned the kiss and smiled at him when they pulled back, "I love you too." 

"That's what I like to hear," he grinned, "So, Rhaenys’s sleeping?" 

"For now." 

"Good… what does Mommy want to do?" 

"Honestly? I'm sorry, Jon, but sleep sounds better than anything at the moment." 

"Don't be sorry… you are supposed to be tired. Besides, I could use some rest too. I haven't slept well with you in the hospital. Now that you're back, I know you can protect me from the dragons under the bed and I can sleep soundly," he joked. 

Dany rolled her eyes, "Wuss." 

"Eh, you love it." 

"Hey, ready for bed?" Jon asked quietly from the doorway of what was soon to be formerly Dany's room and Rhaenys’s nursery. They had gone ahead and changed into pajamas in the separate rooms, since Dany hadn't the time or energy to move all her clothes out that day. 

Dany turned to look at him from her spot next to Rhaenys’s crib, "I just can't seem to stop looking at her." 

He smiled and moved behind her, wrapping his arms around her waist and kissed the side of her neck, "That's how I feel about you." 

She laughed and looked up at him again, "I was thinking…. I kind of don't want to have to be so far away from her… even if it is just down the hall… so I'd like to sleep in here, at least for tonight." 

"Oh," he replied, trying not to look disappointed. After all, they had just agreed to stay married, it would be unfair on his part to assume she'd want to share his bed right away. 

"But, do you mind? Because I know my bed isn't made for two… but we could cuddle," she suggested, her lips curving in a sanguine smile. 

Realizing that she actually wanted him to sleep with her, just in the daybed, Jon nodded enthusiastically, "Cuddling sounds very pleasant." 

"Good," she said quietly, stealing a quick kiss before pulling out of his arms and taking him by the hand to tug him to the bed. 

The two of then climbed in, with Dany on her side and Jon spooning her back. She turned off the light and cloaked the room in darkness as Jon moved his arm around her waist again to hold her to him. Dany took his hand and entwined her fingers with his. 

Content, the young couple fell deeply asleep….. until Rhaenys started screaming for nourishment at midnight…. 

"So Tormund was all proud because he managed to get the diaper on her… but it was backwards," Dany giggled. 

Jon laughed, "Are you serious?" 

"Yes, poor guy, he really tried." 

"And you're going to let him be the sole person responsible for taking care of our baby?" Jon asked, idly stroking his fingers up and down her arm as she sat between his legs with her back against his chest in the recliner. 

"Well… not for a while. Uncle Aemon gets to be the first babysitter… and I am content to not ask him to do it for quite a while… so he has time to learn. Plus, they agreed it would be a group job, not just Tormund, but several guys at once," Dany explained. 

"You'd think that if you got them all together, things would work better, but it usually just creates chaos."

"Hey, maybe I should get them to come over and help you tomorrow while I go to the doctor," Dany teased. 

"Aww… why do you hate me?" he joked. 

"I don't hate you, Silly," she smiled, tilting her head to kiss him. They relaxed in comfortable silence for several moments before Dany remembered that she had wanted to talk to Jon about something, "Missandei reminded me today that the new semester begins September 18th, so if I'm going to go, I should get registered as soon as possible." 

"Oh," he replied, "Have you decided what classes you want to take?" 

"Actually…. I was thinking I really don't want to leave Rhaenys that much. I mean, I know school is important and that I'm not going to love spending 24/7 with an infant… but right now, I can't bear the thought of being away from her…. besides, I would feel kind of guilty, just dropping her off with this or that person. I was considering taking the semester off… but what do you think?" 

He smiled down at her, "I think that sounds fine by me. I'll support whatever you want to do." 

"You're so wonderful." 

"Yeah… you're very lucky to have me." 

"Smart ass!"


	66. Of closures

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I managed to squeeze in some time, even if my laptop and google drive were acting up on me. This is a sweet chapter and I can't believe we are one chapter plus one epilogue to the end. I'm very proud of this story and how it turned out.

Dany glanced in the backseat and smiled as she saw her daughter was still sound asleep. Nothing was more stressful than when she was trying to drive and Rhaenys was crying. Now, if they could just make it the rest of the way home without the baby awakening, Dany would be home free. 

Unfortunately, it was right then that Dany began having difficulty controlling the car. Realizing she probably had a flat tire, she slowly applied the brake and pulled to the side of the road. Cursing her luck, she climbed out of the car to examine the tires, one of which turned out to be quite flat. 

Sighing, Dany opened up the trunk and pulled out the spare and a jack, hoping she could wing this, since the closest she'd come to changing a tire was watching Grey do his when they'd all been on the way to a fair once. She got the hubcap off easy enough, but the lug nuts were a much bigger problem. It wasn't strength, Dany just couldn't seem to grasp the technique. 

"Uh, you're going to ruin the lug nuts that way." 

Dany jumped at the unexpected voice and turned to find Edd standing behind her. 

"Sorry… I was just… jogging by… and thought I'd stop," he apologized 

"Oh, it's okay… you just caught me by surprise." 

"Would you like some help? I've changed a lot of tires." 

Dany wanted to refuse, because she didn't want Edd, of all people, to be able to say she was some dumb girl that couldn't take care of herself, but the fact of the matter was Rhaenys could wake up at any moment and the thought of breastfeeding her daughter in the middle of nowhere was wholly unappealing. Giving him a smile, she nodded, "I would really appreciate it." 

Ten minutes later, Edd put the hubcap back on and gave Dany a satisfied smile, "Done." 

"Wow, you're good. Thank you so much, Edd, really. I don't know if I ever would have gotten it done," Dany replied gratefully. Seeing Edd looking at his dirty hands, as if trying to figure out where he could wipe them, she opened the back door of the car and pulled a package of baby wipes out of Rhaenys’s diaper bag, "Here, you can use these." 

Edd took the wipes she was offering and quickly cleaned off his hands, "Thanks." 

"So… you jog a lot?" she asked, hoping to make polite conversation. She definitely didn't like some of the things Edd had done, she'd wanted to wring his neck when he'd intercepted her calls to Jon when she had been in labor… but she knew he wasn't a bad guy, just misguided. After all, she couldn't imagine Jon being friends with someone hateable. 

"Every day... you used to do it too, right?" Edd replied, "I thought Jon mentioned it." 

"Yeah, before I got too huge. I'm hoping to start doing it again, but I figure I'd better wait a while. They say you're supposed to wait six to eight weeks after a cesarean…" 

"I read something about it once." 

"Yeah," she said, wanting to casually ask if they could jog together sometime, because that would definitely be a good step towards being friends, but was scared it would be too much too soon. 

"Uh, what time is it? I forgot to put my watch on this morning," Edd asked, remembering he had to be in uniform at noon. 

Dany glanced at her watch, "A quarter after eleven." 

"Oh, man, I gotta get moving… it's going to take me at least twenty minutes to get back to the house and I have to be at work by twelve." 

"Let me drive you. I know it defeats the purpose of jogging, but if you're in a hurry…" 

"You don't mind?" he asked. 

"Of course not! Besides, you are only late because you helped me," she smiled, "Get in and I'll take you." 

"Thanks," Edd said, getting in the passenger seat. 

Dany put on her seatbelt, sparing a glance at the still-sleeping baby, before putting the key in the ignition and starting the car up. A moment later what little luck she'd had ran out when Rhaenys awoke and started crying. 

"Shh, Sweetie," Dany soothed her, carefully reaching back so she could try to rock the carseat and calm the baby down until she got to Castle Black. 

"Uh, let me," Edd offered, taking over the rocking, "How should I do it?" 

"Oh, kinda slow… there's this certain rhythm that placates her for a while… I just haven't gotten it down pat, just yet. But she's probably hungry, so there may be no quieting her." 

"You… don't bottle-feed her?" he asked, not feeling really comfortable with asking her if she breastfed. 

Dany shook her head, "Nursing is healthiest." 

"Yeah, it really is. It can make your baby more intelligent and can reduce her chances of getting asthma, ear infections… even obesity and leukemia," Edd agreed, then explained when he saw the surprised look on her face, "My sister is a nurse… when she had her son, I had to hear all about the benefits of everything." 

She smiled, "Well, that has to be good to have a medical professional in the family." 

"Mostly it's just annoying the way she talks endlessly about every little medical thing… it's pretty boring." 

The two of them laughed and Dany replied, "Trust me, I can relate. My uncle owns an art gallery. All my life, I've had to see him get all excited about Monet, Picasso… Plus, I got dragged to tons of places where I had to see gigantic phallic symbol statues. I love art, but sometimes it’s just disturbing, you know?" 

"Ooh, sounds like a nice traumatic childhood," Edd joked, then smiled as the baby stopped crying. Careful not to stop rocking the car seat, he said, "I think I found the rhythm." 

Shocked, Dany replied, "Seems you have the magic touch." 

They had a comfortable conversation for the next few minutes until Dany pulled up in front of Castle Black. 

"We're here." 

"Great, thanks for the ride." 

"Well, thanks for changing my tire…. If not for you, I would still be sitting there." 

"Um… do you want to come in?" 

"You want me to come in?" 

"Well, you need to feed Rhaenys… and the guys would love to see you." 

"Okay," she replied, still surprised that he didn't want her out of his sight as soon as possible. She got out and unstrapped the baby from her car seat, grabbing the diaper bag before she and Edd walked up the path and into the front door of Castle Black. 

Instantly, the residents descended upon them, excited by the presence of Dany and the baby. 

"Dany, what are you doing here? Is everything okay? Do you need Jon?" Sam asked. 

Seeing that Dany probably wouldn't have been able to get a word in edgewise, Edd explained, "She had a flat tire, I was jogging and saw her, changed the tire and she drove me home so I wouldn't be late. She needs to feed the baby, so she came in with me." 

"Oh, you want to use my room?" Tormund asked. 

"No, let her use mine!" Pyp argued. 

"She can use mine," Grenn offered. 

"Or she can use the room Jon used to stay in, since it's still unoccupied," Edd broke in. 

"Yes, that sounds good," Dany smiled, relieved that she didn't have to make a choice. 

"Alright, but will you have lunch with us?" Pyp invited, "We'd really love it." 

"Okay… that sounds fun," she smiled, still amazed at how well-received she was when it came to the frat guys. 

"Jon, did anyone tell you about Dany?" Tormund asked his friend as he walked into the office Jon was using. 

Jon looked up from his pile of paperwork and frowned, "What about Dany?" 

"She's upstairs… no big emergency or anything… Edd brought her in and she's going to have lunch with the guys, so should we take our lunches now too so you can eat with her?" 

He nodded and stood, a look of concern on his face. There was no way in Hell Edd would just drop by the apartment and invite Dany over… something was up. 

He and Tormund got into the elevator and headed up into the fraternity house sitting atop the military base. All the way up, Jon tried to imagine what Edd had done now and how upset Dany may be. 

They reached the hallway on the second floor of Castle Black and started walking towards the stairs when Jon saw Edd coming out of his room. Putting his hand on Tormund's shoulder, he said, "Go on without me, I'll be there in a minute." 

Jon approached Edd, his jaw clenched, and said, "So… Dany came in with you." 

"Yeah, she did," he replied. 

"And? What did you do to her?" 

"I didn't do anything!" Edd said defensively, "God, when did you become so paranoid?" 

"When my friend started betraying me," Jon retorted. 

Edd sighed and shook his head, "I don't have time for this, I'm supposed to be reporting in two minutes. Go see Dany, she's fine!" 

Jon watched as the other man passed him and stood in front of the elevator before he did just as Edd said and descended the stairs to find his wife. He found her sitting at the dining room table with Sam holding Rhaenys next to her. Giving her a smile he sat in the seat beside her and leaned over to tenderly kiss her on the lips. 

"How are my girls today?" 

"We're great," she replied. 

"Good… I hear you came in with Edd," Jon said, trying to be casual, "Is everything okay?" 

"It's fine," she assured him, "Actually, I'm a little embarrassed. I was on my way home after Rhaenys’s one-month checkup and I got a flat tire. I was trying to change it myself, and failing miserably when Edd happened along. He fixed it for me and I drove him home so he wouldn't be late. We got to talking… and we really got along." 

"Really?" 

"Really." 

"Good… I'm very happy to hear that," he grinned, "So, what did the doctor say?" 

"Rhaenys is in perfect health. She's growing just as she's supposed to, sleeping the right amount and her belly button looks good. Like I said, perfect." 

"Well, she's been nothing less than perfect since she was born," he said, half-jokingly. 

"True," she agreed, giving him another kiss before Sam started tapping her on the shoulder.   
Turning, she saw him grinning excitedly, "I think she made a stinky!" 

Dany leaned down to smell her daughter's diaper before grimacing and nodding, "She sure did." 

"Great, can I change her diaper this time? I discovered it," Sam asked. 

"Duh, of course you discovered it, you're holding her! You shouldn't get to hold her and change her diaper!" Tormund complained. 

Sighing, Dany looked at her husband helplessly, hoping he could decide who to let change the baby's diaper.


	67. Of happiness

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's finally here! I'll be updating the epilogue later on if all goes well! It's been an honor to write for y'all. Had a lovely time and it's been an incredible journey. Thank you for sticking up until the end! Much love! Thank you!

"I'm home," Jon announced upon entering the kitchen and seeing he didn't have to whisper so as not to wake Rhaenys. He'd spent the afternoon playing basketball with Edd as their first act of being friends again. After Jon had found out the actual story of how Edd had helped Dany a few days earlier, he'd apologized to his friends, and Edd had tried to atone for his previous actions as well. 

Dany looked up and smiled, "Hey, how'd it go?" 

"It was great… lots of fun," he replied, giving her a kiss before smiling down at Rhaenys in the baby tub on the counter, "Hey you, is Mama giving you a bath? Are you going to be a clean girl?" 

"She's being so good today… I'm very proud of her… no fussing at all," Dany smiled. Rhaenys hadn't enjoyed her first few baths and Dany had ended up getting nearly as wet as the baby. 

"Good girl. You’re daddy’s little girl, aren’t you? Daddy loves you very much," Jon babbled, then looked at his wife, "If it's okay, I'm going to hop in the shower so I can be clean too." 

"That's fine," Dany replied, "We're having a pot roast for dinner… it'll be ready in half an hour." 

"I can tell… it smells delicious," he smiled, giving her one more kiss before heading off to the shower. 

When he emerged, clean and already in his pajamas, fifteen minutes later, Jon found the kitchen and living room empty, so he figured Dany was dressing Rhaenys in the nursery and walked in the room… but instead found her breastfeeding. 

Despite the fact that they had agreed to try having a real marriage and that they had made love all those months earlier, Jon had never witnessed Dany breastfeeding. In the middle of the night, he always slept through Rhaenys’s feedings… and Dany always took her to another room when she was hungry in the daytime. 

"I'm sorry," he blurted out, feeling like he was invading something very private. 

"Oh gods, I'm sorry," Dany said at the same time, trying to find a blanket. 

Jon found the one she was looking for on the bed and walked across the room while not looking at her to get it, "You have nothing to be sorry for." 

"This makes you uncomfortable, I understand that," she replied. 

Surprised, he turned to her, "No, it doesn't… I think it's beautiful that you nourish her. It's so… natural and loving and… amazing. I just… well, it's your body and I don't want to… intrude." 

Dany smiled, touched by his words, "You aren't intruding." 

"Good… so do you want the blanket?" 

She slowly shook her head, "But you could sit with me… if you wanted." 

"I'd love to," he answered honestly before going out to the dining room to retrieve one of the chairs. He set it down next to Dany and sat in it, taking her free hand in his and gently running his thumb over the back of it. They shared a smile before he kissed Dany on the forehead, "You really are gorgeous." 

"I love you," she replied. 

"I love you too," he said as he ran his hand through her hair. 

Silent, the two both looked down at their daughter, still hungrily suckling from her mother's breast, feeling like the luckiest people in the world. 

"Anything good on?" Dany asked, sitting beside Jon on the couch as she brushed her wet hair. 

"Nothing besides Saturday Night Live," he replied, "How was your bath?" 

"Nice and relaxing," she grinned. 

He held his hand out for the brush and asked, "Can I?" 

Nodding, Dany handed him the brush and moved so she at between his open legs. Jon began to slowly run the brush through her hair, the fresh scent of her shampoo making him want her even more than usual. She was so beautiful… the most beautiful woman he had ever seen by far… her skin was so soft, her curves even more luscious thanks to her recent motherhood… and she smelled heavenly. 

With her body pressed so close to his, Dany soon felt Jon's arousal and was surprised to find a corresponding response deep inside her womb. For several minutes, she enjoyed the feeling of Jon brushing her hair and contemplated any possible actions for the night. All the information she had read said that you could usually have sex starting four to six weeks after giving birth. It had been four weeks already…. Plus, she knew that wouldn't be a problem. And since the guys had given Jon a box of condoms, laughing and telling him it was because he and Dany couldn't seem to keep their hands- or at least lips- off each other, she knew they had protection. All that she had to worry about was if she thought they were ready. 

One more brush against Jon's evidence of his excitement convinced her. Turning around, Dany placed her hand on Jon's cheek and kissed him passionately. He reciprocated, trying not to get too caught up in something he'd never dream of asking her to finish, but not able to resist her full lips. 

Dany pulled back and looked up at him, her eyes dark with desire, "Want to go to bed?" 

"Sure," he replied, having a hard time finding his voice. 

She stood and held her hand out to him. Taking it, he stood and started leading her towards the nursery, but Dany resisted, instead jerking her head towards the master bedroom. 

"Let's sleep there tonight?" 

"There?" he asked, wondering if she meant what he hoped she meant. In the month since Rhaenys had been born, they'd always slept in Dany's daybed in the nursery… not that he minded at all. He rather enjoyed sleeping in such a small bed… having no choice but to cuddle with Dany at night. 

"Do you not want to?" she asked, worrying that she'd misjudged him. 

"It's not a question of that, Baby," Jon swore to her, "I'm just worried… are you sure you're ready? I mean, I would love to make love to you right now, but it's not worth you risking your health." 

She took a step closer and kissed him softly on the lips, her eyes never leaving his, "I'm absolutely fine. Make love to me, Jon." 

He knew he'd never have the will to deny Dany anything, so he swept her up in his arms and carried her bridegroom style to the bed that they had first made love in… the bed they would make countless amazing memories on if it killed him. And as Dany pulled her nightshirt off and revealed herself in only a pair of panties, Jon began to think that it just might kill him. He sat on the bed beside her and she immediately began kissing him with all the love and lust she felt for him, while tugging his shirt over his head- two activities that didn't mix well. With a laugh, Dany pulled back so she could remove the shirt before she returned her mouth to his. Jon returned her kisses as his large hands stroked up and down the soft, smooth skin of her back. 

She moved her mouth down to kiss his jaw and the side of his neck, whispering in his ear, "Where are the condoms?" 

"Condoms?" he moaned, his brain no longer worked as his body was overcome with pleasurable sensations. 

Dany chuckled and pulled away to help him remember the small rubber objects, "Yes, condoms… I want more kids someday… but Rhaenys doesn't need a little brother or sister in nine months." 

Dimly, Jon realized what she was saying and nodded slightly before leaving her on the bed and racing to the dresser to dig around his underwear drawer for the condoms he'd gotten from the guys. While he was gone, Dany pulled off her panties and tossed them aside before he turned around to face her again. He hurried back over to her, but before Jon could climb back on the bed, Dany grabbed his hips and stilled him. 

Looking him in the eye, Dany hooked her fingers in the waistband of his boxers and slid them past his hips where they fell to his feet. Their last time had been about him pleasing her…. she wanted to return the favor this time, thank him for everything he'd done… and loving her more than she felt she deserved. 

Dipping her head down, Dany encased the tip of his erection in her mouth, making Jon groan in rapture. Apparently she was doing a good job, because he continued to moan and whisper words of encouragement as she proceeded to swallow as much of his length as she could, as well as stimulate his sensitive skin with the tip of her tongue. After a few moments, though, Jon hesitantly pulled back stroking his hand over her head. 

Breathlessly, he said, "We gotta stop… or this is going to be over before we even start." 

Dany reluctantly agreed, knowing she needed to have him inside of her or she'd explode from unfulfilled lust. She allowed him to push her onto her back and spread her legs, pulling her towards him so that her bottom was just over the edge of the bed. Kneeling down, Jon spread her nether lips with his fingers, burying his mouth in her center, savoring the sweet nectar he found dripping from her. 

Dany cried out in pleasure, trying to remember not to wake the baby, but having a very hard time keeping herself in check. Her hands grabbed the comforter, clutching it like a lifeline as Jon drove her body into a frenzy in a matter of seconds. A moment later, her body shook violently in orgasm and she bit her bottom lip in a desperate effort not to scream. 

As soon as she'd calmed enough, Dany reached down and tugged Jon back up the length of her body, kissing him deeply and tasting herself on his lips and tongue. Jon responded in kind, his hands frantically moving from her shoulders to her neck and over the sides of her face. 

"I want you so much," she whispered against his mouth, "What did you do with the condom?" 

"Oh God, I don't know," he replied, pulling back so he could search for the small foil packet. 

Dany laughed and sat up as well to aid in the effort. After a little bit of looking, they managed to find the condom on the floor and settled back on the bed with Jon bracing himself above Dany. He opened the package and slid the condom on before looking at Dany seriously. 

"Are you sure?" 

Dany smiled, recalling him asking her that the last time, "I've never been so sure in my life." 

"Okay, but… if it hurts… I want you to tell me and we'll stop. Promise?" 

She nodded quickly, "I promise." 

With torturous slowness, Jon slid himself inside her, making them one. He remained still, allowing her to adjust to him, knowing as much as he wanted her and as wonderful and magical as this was…. it wasn't worth causing her a moment's pain. It was only when Dany lifted her hips that he dared to move, gingerly sliding in and out of her tight, slick channel as they kissed each other lovingly, their tongues an imitation of lovemaking. 

Their tender movements grew more frenzied as their passion escalated. Without breaking either connection, Dany rolled them over so that she was on top. Jon raked his fingers over her back, gripping her hips and pumping up into her. Dany broke away from the kiss, sitting up so that he could be deeper inside her. As she leaned back, positioning her hands on his thighs, Jon moved one of his hands from her hip to her center, where he skillfully manipulated her clitoris until Dany gasped as her second orgasm rocked through her body. 

As her muscles clamped down on him, Jon found the sensation too great and achieved his own orgasm, furiously jerking his hips up as they continued to slam against each other as the waves of ecstasy rolled through them. At long last, when they were both spent, Dany collapsed on top of him, placing soft kisses on the sweat slicked skin of his chest. 

As he caught his breath, Jon lifted Dany's hand to kiss mouth and kissed the back of her before whispering, "I'm so in love with you…. But I know I'll love you even more tomorrow…. And I don't know how…. It doesn't seem possible to love you any more than I do at this second." 

She smiled, "I think I know what you mean… because I feel the same way about you. I love you, Jon Snow, wholly and completely, and I can't imagine my life without you."

"Don't worry, Baby, you don't have to. You'll never get rid of me." 

"Good," she sighed as she rolled to the side so that Jon could pull off the condom and tied a knot in it before tossing it into the wastebasket a few feet away. 

He managed to pull the bedding down so that the two of them could climb under it and they cuddled together in bed, blissful in the afterglow of their lovemaking. Jon kissed her forehead, happy in his confidence that this time, she'd be there in the morning… and the next morning… and the morning after that. She was his wife. 

As Jon's breathing grew even, Dany climbed out of bed, having the presence of mind to think about when Rhaenys woke up and grabbed the baby monitor receiver from the kitchen and setting it on the nightstand in their bedroom before climbing back in her husband's arms, settling her head on his shoulder. 

Feeling like the most blessed woman on Earth, Dany fell asleep in her husband's arms, the warmest, safest, most satisfying place she could be… the place she knew she'd spend the rest of her life.


	68. Epilogue

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I cannot believe this is it! I intended to write this story until the end of August, the latest and here we are. Almost November and 68 chapters later. 
> 
> As I said before, thank you all for being here. It was a delight, a pleasure and an honor to write these characters that we all love and cherish. 
> 
> Thank you!

Dany took a deep breath and examined her reflection in the full length mirror in her old bedroom at her uncle’s home. Despite the fact that she had been planning this day for over six months, she still couldn’t believe it was happening.

Her wedding day… for real this time.

She slowly ran her hands over the front of the white and ivory wedding dress, wondering if Jon would like it. She had planned on getting something sleeveless, but as soon as she’d seen this dress, with its lace sleeves and a-line skirt with an elegant train, she had known that this was the one. In all the dreams she’d had of being a bride when she was a little girl, she had never imagined she would feel so beautiful. It wasn’t just the dress, or her hair… or even the make up. Just knowing that today was the day that she would walk down the aisle in church and find Jon there, waiting for her, so that they could declare their love and desire to be together for the rest of their lives in front of all their family and friends… Dany felt gorgeous, from the inside out.

Careful not to mess it up, she touched her silver tresses, admiring how the hairdresser had created a very complicated, yet amazing style. She’d taken the hair on top and pulled it back into a bun with the curled ends hanging in loose ringlets. The rest of it had been curled in ringlets as well and hung down to her shoulders. She’d opted not to deal with a veil, something Aunt Cat hadn’t been too happy about but had finally relented when it became obvious that Dany would stand her ground.

"Nervous?" Missandei asked from her perch on the side of Dany’s bed.

Dany turned to her and smiled, "A little."

"Well, what is the problem?" she asked.

"It’s the actual wedding. There’s a lot of pressure and stress and a million things to worry about."

"Yeah, like walking down the aisle, I mean, I’m kind of nervous and I’m just a bridesmaid. You’re the bride and if you trip or something, everyone will see it because in a way, this day is all about you."

"Oh God, what if I trip? I’m not used to these shoes or this dress… it has a train, I’ve never worn a train before! I’ll look like a fool!"

"You won’t trip," Missandei assured her.

Before Dany could freak out any further, her bedroom door opened and Aemon came in carrying Rhaenys, followed by Lyarra, who was going to be the flower girl. She couldn’t help but smile when she saw her beautiful ten month old daughter. Aemon had been responsible for dressing the baby girl while Dany spent the morning getting ready and had done a great job of it. She was wearing a pink dress with pale pink petals on the skirt and a matching pale pink hairband. Her hair was as blond was when she’d been born, almost blonde, and naturally curled into loose ringlets. White tights and patent leather shoes completed her look and Dany found her so adorable that she completely forgot about the stress of the wedding and was instantly absorbed in her love for her daughter.

"Hey baby girl!"

"Ooh, look at Mama! Isn’t she beautiful?" Aemon grinned at his granddaughter before handing the baby to Dany. "Sweetling, you look amazing. Jon is a lucky man."

"I know," Missandei agreed, "I think we’d better bring a mop to clean up all the drool he’s going to have around him."

"Thanks, Uncle Aemon," Dany smiled, kissing Aemon on the cheek, "Both for the compliment and for taking care of Rhaenys."

"Oh, you know I love being the doting grandfather. I’m really looking forward to having her for the next three days while you two are on your honeymoon."

Dany sighed and kissed Rhaenys on the top of her head, "Oh, I can’t imagine being away from her for three whole days! Why did I let Jon convince me a honeymoon was a good idea?"

"Because it is a good idea," Aemon told her, "I know that as soon as you two get there you will be very very happy to have some time alone."

"Besides, she’s with your family, you know she’ll be fine," Missandei asked, "And Aunt Cat will be here too."

"You look so pretty, Aunt Dany," Lyarra smiled.

"Thank you, sweetheart, you do too," Dany smiled bending down to kiss Lyarra on her cheek. 

Aemon said, "We only have a few minutes before we need to leave for the church, so it’s time for a very important wedding tradition. Dany needs ‘something old, something new, something borrowed and something blue’."

"Oh my God, I completely forgot!" Dany exclaimed.

Aemon smiled, "Never fear… I didn’t."

Pulling a small jewelry box out of his pocket, she opened it to reveal a pearl bracelet. "This was my grandmother’s. She gave it to my mother on her wedding day, and she gave it to yours on her wedding day. It can be something old."

Dany felt tears in her eyes as her uncle handled the jewelry to her, "Are you sure? I know how important it is to you."

"Of course I am sure. It’s always meant to be yours and one day you can pass it on to Rhaenys," he replied, then pulled out a pair of pearl earrings, "And here is something new."

Dany grinned, "Thank you."

"You deserve it, Honey… you’ve made me a very proud uncle."

Aemon got up at took Rhaenys from Dany to free up her hands and allow her to put the earrings on.

"Now, this doesn’t have any deep meaning, but you needed to borrow something and I know you always liked it, so I want you to wear my ankle bracelet," Missandei continued, pulling out a simple silver chain.

Dany sat on the bed and fastened the bracelet around her ankle and then rolled her eyes as Missandei dangled a garter in front of her face.

"Something blue! You don’t want to disappoint Jon, do you?"

"Jon? Don’t you mean the rest of the guys from Castle Black? As soon as we announced we were having a big wedding, they started teasing me about the garter."

Aemon pulled a camera out as Dany slid the garter up her thigh, "Okay, let me have a few pictures of you before we go. First one alone."

Dany acquiesced, even though they’d hired a photographer posing for a couple pictures by herself, a couple with Rhaenys, and then some with Missandei and Lyarra, before took a few with Aemon and Dany. 

With just a few minutes left before they needed to head to the church, Dany gave her friend her present, which was a silver bracelet with heart charms on them. 

"How you doing, man?" Sam asked Jon as they waited near the altar for the ceremony to begin, prepared to do his best man duties and quell any fears the groom might be having.

"I’m great," he answered honestly, a grin on his face. The morning had gone off without a hitch. He and all his groomsmen were present, outfitted in their dress uniforms and ready to go. Aunt Cat had informed him that Dany and the girls had arrived before everyone else and were making last minute preparations in a small room in another part of the church…. everything was going smoothly.

"I’ll bet," Tormund leaned over and snickered, "You just can’t wait for the honeymoon so that you and Dany can screw."

Jon rolled his eyes as Tormund and several other of his groomsmen laughed until Aunt Cat, sitting in the front pew just a few feet away, cleared her throat loudly.

"I heard that, young man."

The men all immediately quieted, having the decency to look ashamed. Jon had some peace, and tried to get his head together. This was just… so overwhelming. Despite the fact that Dany had been his wife for a year and a half, the last nine months of which she had been truly his wife…. this day was special. This was his chance to tell everyone that he loved Dany more than anything and wanted to spend his life with her. This was their day to celebrate their love with everyone they cared about.

Plus, it would get his aunt off his back.

At long last, the doors to the church opened and Aemon walked in carrying Rhaenys. As Grey, serving as an usher, escorted Aemon to his seat in the front pew on the opposite side, Jon grinned at his daughter. Sometimes he reminded himself that biologically, she wasn’t his and he couldn’t believe it, because he loved her so much and she looked just like Dany. Rhaenys caught side of him and squealed excitedly, waving at him. Jon waved back as Aemon sat down and settled the baby on his lap.

Realizing that it was about to start his wedding, Jon felt a twinge of excitement in his stomach and turned his eyes back to the double doors in the back of the church, just as Robb and Grey walked through them so that they would know when to open them to let the girls in.

"I have to tell you that you look absolutely breathtaking," Jorah said quietly as Dany took his arm.

She beamed up at him, "Thank you… you’re looking quite handsome yourself."

Jorah blushed slightly and looked down for a second before he looked at her with concern, "Are you feeling alright? I know that weddings tend to be a bit nerve-wracking."

Dany nodded, "Just… don’t let me trip?"

"Certainly."

"Okay… are we all set?" a woman who worked for the church and was responsible for making sure the wedding went as planned, asked them. She’d already made sure that Lyarra and Missandei were ready to begin and gave the bride a quick once-over.

"As I’ll ever be," Dany sighed.

She stuck her head inside the church and let Grey know it was time and a few seconds later he and Robb, the other usher, opened the doors, which let the organist and everyone know that the wedding was starting. Soon, the organist began playing ‘Somewhere over the rainbow’ and Lyarra stepped out and began her walk down the aisle, smiling brightly at all the onlookers. This was the day she’d been practicing for over the past six months and she was going to revel in the attention.

Missandei did better than she ever would have imagined, holding her head high and smiling as she marched down the aisle, the proud maid of honor. She saw Jon’s excited face, knew that he was anticipating seeing Dany, and felt so happy for her friend in that moment. Dany finally had the happiness she deserved.

Jon exchanged smiles with Missandei. As the organist started playing the wedding march, he felt huge butterflies in his stomach. It was as though he was marrying Dany for the first time.

After what seemed like an eternity, there she was, standing in the doorway with Jorah beside her, looking more beautiful than he had ever seen her. Jon couldn’t believe that this amazing creature was going to be his wife. He was positive that he must have done something really great in a past life.

Dany forgot everyone else in the church that was now standing and smiling at her as Jorah slowly led her down the aisle. All she could see was Jon, looking so handsome in his uniform, complete with a sword and white gloves. She really was a sucker for a man in uniform. And knowing that not only was he gorgeous, but that he was a gentle, loving, honest man… who treated her like a queen…. she found that it didn’t matter if she tripped or stumbled over her wedding vows, or the cake was lopsided… being married to Jon was all she cared about.

At long last, they reached the altar. Jorah affectionately kissed Dany on the cheek and smiled at Jon before taking his seat next to Aemon. The young couple took each other’s hands and waited for the Septon to begin the ceremony. 

The middle aged man cleared his throat and said, "We are gathered here today to take part in the most time-honored celebration of the human family, uniting a woman and a man in marriage. Jon and Dany have come to witness before us, telling of their love for each other. We remember, theirs is a love whose source is the affection of those who loved them into being."

Dany felt herself calm down as she stared into Jon’s bright brown eyes. With just a look, he reminded her that together, they could do anything.

"We remind them that they are performing an act of complete faith, each in the other; that the heart of their marriage will be the relationship they create. In a world where faith often falls short of expectation, it is a tribute to these two who now join hands and hearts in perfect faith."

Aunt Cat sobbed loudly, earning looks from both the bride and groom. Dany’s shoulders shook as she laughed, while Jon rolled his eyes at his drama queen aunt.

The Septon looked at Jon and said, "Jon, will you receive Daenerys as your wife? Will you pledge to her your love, faith and tenderness, cherishing her with a husband's loyalty and devotion?"

"I will," Jon replied confidently.

"Daenerys, will you receive Jon as your husband? Will you pledge to him your love, faith and tenderness, cherishing him with a wife’s loyalty and devotion?"

Dany smiled widely, "I will."

"Jon and Daenerys, receive each other from your fathers and mothers, who give you into each other's keeping, by saying now, each to the other, words which will tell of your love."

Jon took a deep breath, reciting the words he’d memorized, "I, Jon, take you, Daenerys to be no other than yourself, in all the ways life may find us, tending you in sickness and rejoicing with you in health, as long as we both shall live to love."

"I, Daenerys, take you, Jon, to be no other than yourself, in all the ways life may find us, tending you in sickness and rejoicing with you in health, as long as we both shall live to love," Dany replied, happy that she didn’t screw up and forget anything.

"Will you now give and receive a ring?" the Septon prompted.

In unison, they said, "We will."

Rikkon, who was the ring bearer, then walked up to the Septon with their rings on small white pillow. Gesturing to the pillow, the man continued, "This circlet of precious metal is justly regarded as a fitting emblem of the purity and perpetuity of the Marriage State. The ancients were reminded by the circle of eternity, as it is so fashioned as to have neither beginning nor end; while gold is so incorruptible that it cannot be tarnished by use or time. So may the union, at this time solemnized, be incorruptible in its purity and more lasting that time itself."

He handed Dany’s wedding ring, which was the original simple band melded to a new one with a diamond on it, to Jon, who in turn slid it on Dany’s finger.

"Wear this ring forever, Daenerys, as a symbol of love and peace and of all that is unending."

Jon pulled his gloves off so that Dany could slide his ring on as the Septon repeated, "Wear this ring forever, Jon, as a symbol of love and peace and of all that is unending."

The couple looked up at each other and smiled brightly, happy to be one step closer to being man and wife…. again.

"We speak to Jon and Daenerys of love, in which the trust and freedom of the other person becomes as significant as the trust and freedom of one's self. We speak to them of generosity, which gathers the beauty of earth for riches, and the kindness which turns away the wrath of foolish men and women. We speak of each of our hopes for their continued growth through patience, one for the other. We speak of our confidence that new levels of understanding, discovered by them in experiences of sorrow and tribulation, shall bring ever new surprises of strength and fortitude they do not now know."

"In the years which shall bring Jon and Daenerys into greater age and wisdom, we pray that their love shall be ever young; that they shall be able always to recover from moments of despair, the lithesome ways of buoyant youth. In this hope may they keep the vows made on this day, in freedom, teaching each other who they are, what they yet shall be, enabling them to know that in the fullness of being, they are more than themselves and more than each other; that they are all of us, and that together we share joyously the fruits of life."

Rhaenys started to fuss, deciding she had been quiet long enough, and Dany prayed her uncle could keep her calm until the ceremony was over because this was absolutely not the best of times to have to stop and take care of the baby.

"Inasmuch as Jon and Daenerys have declared their love and devotion to each other before family and friends, I now greet them with you as husband and wife. Now you will feel no rain, for each of you will be sanctuary to the other. Now you will feel no cold, for each of you will be warmth to the other. Now there is no isolation for you. Now there is no more loneliness. Now you are two, but there is only one life in front of you."

Smiling at the two of them, he said, "Go now and enter into the days of your togetherness. You now may kiss the bride."

Grinning, the two moved closer together, Dany throwing her arms around Jon’s neck as he slid his around her waist and their lips met in a passionate kiss. The entire church clapped, including Rhaenys, who was soon excited by the reactions around her. Breaking apart from their kiss, the bride and groom grinned at their daughter, feeling that their life together was just a bit more complete.

"Oh Honey, you look so beautiful," Aunt Cat said as she hugged her daughter-in-law. 

"Thank you, you look great too," Dany said, kissing her on the cheek.

"You know, on the one hand, I think that my nephew is a very lucky man to have such a wonderful woman for a wife… but on the other, I feel sorry for him."

Dany frowned, "Why is that?"

Aunt Cat took Rhaenys from Dany’s arms and kissed the baby, "Because in fifteen years, he is going to have his hands full with this one. I can already tell that with the exception of her skin color, Rhaenys is the spitting image of her mother. Poor Jon will be beating the boys off with a stick."

Dany laughed, "Well, I can’t argue with that… not sure she looks that much like me, but of course I think my daughter is the most beautiful girl in the world."

“She’s the most beautiful girl, isn’t she?” Aunt Cat said. 

"Ah, good, aunt Cat has the baby… it’s time for our dance," Jon informed his bride as he approached.

Taking her by the hand, he led her to the center of the dance floor in the banquet hall that they had rented for the reception. As he pulled her into his arms, the DJ started played a song.

_ Heart beats fast _

_ Colors and promises _

_ How to be brave _

_ How can I love when I'm afraid to fall _

_ But watching you stand alone _

_ All of my doubt, suddenly goes away somehow _

Dany leaned her head against Jon’s firm chest, closing her eyes and smiling contentedly. With the exception of the day she first saw Rhaenys, this was the best day of her life. Jon felt the same way, his hands possessively on her waist as he kissed the top of her head. She was his wife and now everyone knew it.

_ One step closer _

_ I have died everyday, waiting for you _

_ Darling, don't be afraid, I have loved you for a thousand years _

_ I'll love you for a thousand more _

"I’m still mad at you," Aunt Cat told her oldest son.

Robb stopped stuffing hors d'oeuvres in his mouth and said, "What?"

"You should have been a groomsman, not just an usher!"

"I told you, Mom, if I had been a groomsman, I would have either been the only one in a tux or Jon would have had to make everyone wear tuxes. Besides, being a groomsman was less stressful."

Aunt Cat shook her head and sighed, "You will regret it for the rest of your life." Shaking his head at his wife’s non stop talking, Ned Stark couldn’t stop thinking. Looking at Jon and Dany as they danced, he couldn’t be happier for them. His son has got everything that every parent dreams about. A lovely wife, a beautiful child and a bright and amazing future ahead of them. 

_ Time stands still _

_ Beauty in all she is _

_ I will be brave _

_ I will not let anything, take away _

_ What's standing in front of me _

_ Every breath, every hour has come to this _

And that’s precisely how Jon felt about his Dany. Daenerys Targeryen-Snow. The love of his life. The mother of his daughter. The most giving, amazing, strongest woman he’s ever met. 

_ One step closer _

_ I have died everyday, waiting for you _

_ Darling, don't be afraid, I have loved you for a thousand years _

_ I'll love you for a thousand more _

_ And all along I believed, I would find you _

_ Time has brought your heart to me, I have loved you for a thousand years _

_ I'll love you for a thousand more _

_ One step closer _

_ One step closer _

_ I have died everyday, waiting for you _

_ Darling, don't be afraid, I have loved you for a thousand years _

_ I'll love you for a thousand more _

_ And all along I believed, I would find you _

_ Time has brought your heart to me, I have loved you for a thousand years _

_ I'll love you for a thousand more _

  
  


"I just want to tell you that if you smash me in the face with cake, all your friends are prepared to kick your ass," Dany warned her husband as they stood next to their wedding cake holding a knife.

Jon grinned, "And mess up your beautiful face? I wouldn’t dream of it."

Together, they slid the knife through the cake and cut themselves a piece. Dany put it on a plate and broke off a small bit before feeding it to him. He happily swallowed it, sucking frosting off each of her fingers. Jon behaved himself during his turn, feeding Dany her piece and allowing her to suck the frosting off his fingers as well.

As Aemon, Aunt Cat and the hired photographer snapped away, Dany and Jon kissed each other lovingly amongst clapping and much eye rolling from many of the young males at the reception.

"Rhaenys, are you going to miss your Mommy and Daddy?" grandma Lyarra asked the baby sitting on her lap as she waited for Aunt Cat to bring her a piece of cake. "Of course you are, right sweetheart? Well, don’t you worry. Your Grandpas Aemon and Ned and Grandma Cat will take wonderful care of you."

"Gah!" Rhaenys grinned, clapping her hands together.

"Isn’t she darling?" Aunt Cat said to her mother-in-law as she sat in the chair next to her, carrying three plates with cake. "I brought you a special treat, Sweetling."

"Catelyn, did you ask her mother if it was all right to give her cake?"

"Dany won’t mind," Aunt Cat assured her, feeding Rhaenys a tiny bit before pulling her into her own lap. "I’ll hold her so you can eat."

Grandma Lyarra began eating, half listening to her daughter-in-law’s rambling as she watched all the young people laughing, dancing and eating. She loved happy occasions such as this.

"Oh, look at Dany and Jon. So in love," Aunt Cat sighed.

Lyarra couldn’t help but nod in agreement, "So many times you have to worry when a couple marries…. Will they stay married? But those two are rock solid."

"Definitely," Aunt Cat smiled, then lifted Rhaenys so she was standing in her lap, "You know what they should do? They should give you a little brother or sister. Wouldn’t you like that?"

Rhaenys giggled, she loved her Grandma Cat.

"Oh, Catelyn, you leave those two alone. They are both young and have no need to rush."

"I didn’t say they had to rush, but if I were to mention it, I don’t think it would do any harm."

Grandma Lyarra sighed; how on Earth did she end up with such an incorrigible daughter-in-law?

"So, was it really really gross when I kissed Uncle Jon?" Dany asked Rikkard, as she sat between him and his twin sister while they ate cake.

Rikkard shrugged, "It wasn’t too bad. At least I didn’t see your tongues!"

"Rikkard!" Lyarra shrieked as Dany laughed.

"Hey Aunt Dany, do Uncle Jon and his friends ever fight with those swords?" he asked, ignoring his sister.

"I’m not sure, but I don’t think so, Rikkard."

"How come you don’t know?"

"Because it’s top secret stuff."

"Wow! It’s so secret that Uncle Jon can’t tell you?" Lyarra asked, amazed.

Dany nodded, "It’s very very secret."

"That’s probably a good idea," Rikkard nodded, "Girls can’t keep secrets."

"What?" Dany cried, reaching over and ticking Rikkard, "I don’t think so."

Lyarra joined in on the effort until Rikkard went limp from laughing so much. She and Dany let him sit half-slumped in his chair and settled back in their own seats.

"Aunt Dany, I really like Rhaenys. She’s so cute and sweet," Lyarra said.

Dany smiled, "Thank you… I can tell, she likes you too."

"I love it how she’ll see everyone else laugh or clap and look confused for a second, then do it too, just because everyone else is."

"She really loves how she doesn’t talk, though," Rikkard added, "Lyarra loves people who don’t talk because then she can talk more."

Dany laughed again as the twins started bickering. She really loved spending time with Jon’s niece and nephew. As much as she wanted Rhaenys to stay her little baby forever, she couldn’t wait until she was walking and talking as well… and hopefully she’d have siblings to fight with as well.

"Catelyn, have you seen the twins?" Talisa asked her mother-in-law, carrying Rodrik around as she looked for her older children, praying they weren’t causing trouble.

"Yes, I just saw them sitting with Dany," Aunt Cat responded.

"Are they bothering her? She shouldn’t be babysitting today of all days."

"They’re fine, Dany seemed to be enjoying herself. You know, she is so wonderful with children…. I was just telling grandmother… don’t you think it would be wonderful if Dany and Jon were to get pregnant soon?"

Sansa sighed, as she listened to her, said,"Mother…."

Samwell set a chair in the middle of the dance floor, and amongst the hoots and hollers of more than a few men, Dany sat in it. Jon knelt before her and slid his hand up her leg, laughing as the guys shouted even more. At long last, he reached the blue garter and slid it back down her leg.

Standing up, with his back to all the guys, Jon shot the garter at them and straight to Tormund, who first smiled at the garter, then looked horrified at the implication. Having sex with only one person for the rest of his life was not something he was interested in!

After a quick change into more casual attire, it was time for Dany and Jon to leave and begin their honeymoon. Dany held Rhaenys tightly in her arms and felt tears welling in her eyes.

"Oh my baby, I’m going to miss you!"

"She’ll be fine," Jon assured her, "You know my aunt will take great care of her."

"I know," she nodded.

"And they have our numbers if anything happens… which it won’t."

Dany sighed, "I love her very, very much."

"I do too… but that doesn’t mean we can’t enjoy a few days on our own."

"Listen to your husband, Dany, he speaks the truth," Aemon grinned.

Aunt Cat nodded, "And you know, if you want to do something nice for Rhaenys while you’re gone… you could make a sibling for her!"

"Oh, gods, Aunt Cat!" Jon exclaimed as Dany blushed.

Soon after Dany reluctantly relinquished Rhaenys to her mother-in-law, they were swarmed by the guys from Castle Black, who shook hands with Jon and hugged Dany, even Edd, who had actually gotten to be good friends with her after they had made amends. After she had said goodbye to all of them and most of the members of Jon’s family, she hugged and kissed Grey and Missandei and shared a touching goodbye with Jorah before Jon pulled her out to the limo while everyone threw rose petals.

The couple laughed as they saw how the guys had ‘decorated’ the vehicle with shaving cream, cans and condoms before climbing inside. With everyone waving goodbye, Dany and Jon left for their long delayed honeymoon.

Inside the limo, the two kissed passionately before pulling apart, knowing it would be all the sweeter if they saved it for when they were at long last in their hotel room in Oldtown. They couldn’t go away for long because of Rhaenys, plus they figured it would be kind of romantic to go back where it had all begun.

Dany settled, resting her head on Jon’s chest as they sat with their arms around each other, "I love you."

"I love you too… I’m so happy you married me… again."

She smiled, "Me too."

"Don’t worry, as soon as we get in the room, we’ll call my aunt and check on the baby, okay?"

Dany looked up at him and grinned lovingly; he really was incredibly considerate. "Thank you."

Jon kissed her again before leaning back in his seat, snuggling her close to him. It was amazing, really… how all of this had come about. He never would have dreamed that he would be in this position a year and a half earlier…. oh, what a deal for life he had made.

**THE END**


End file.
